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I'd put my bet on the 1st.
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They are being used as a processing point not holding client funds. Have you forgotten already? You guys just can't stop this nonsense, can you?
I´d put my bet on the 2nd. Wells Fargo would eventually be bailed out, because they are "too big to fail".
On the other hand, no one would save a tiny Bank from Poland.
If they are merely using them as a processing point, the situation is even worse. Using an intermediary bank
to circumvent regulations (or to circumvent the impossibility of opening a bank account in another jurisdiction) is a very bad idea,
unless you want to end up being persecuted for money laundering.
Just take a look at the current situation. If you want to deposit EUR to Bitfinex, you have to wire EUR to a bank account at a tiny
Bank from Poland that is registered in the name of a payment processor that is tied to a bank in Panama. Bitfinex is incorporated in
the British Virgin Islands.
If you would ever end up in the situation where you want to sue one of the parties involved, you are in the disastrous situation
of having to sue entities in places like Panama or the BVIs.