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.
I'd say it is still entirely irrelevant but actually small banks all got bailed out unlike Lehman Brothers.
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.
I would say that they are actually doing that specifically to stay within all laws and regulations.
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.
If you think about trying to sue someone over Crypto then I think you are deluding yourself to even be involved. Stick to AAA-rated government bonds if you want to stay safe. Bitfinex is no riskier than anything else in this space, it just attracts a larger number of people making baseless allegations than most.
If you think all that regulation and having your funds held in a client segregated account at a big US bank is going to help you, then you should look up the case of MF Global.