Banks, asset managers, and corporates push crypto and digital currencies into the mainstream amid shifting financial dynamics.<\/p>\n
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The argest bank in Italy, Intesa Sanpaolo, quietly purchased $1 million worth of bitcoin in early January. The move was not publicly disclosed; it surfaced in an internal bank memo. When pressed by reporters, CEO Carlo Messina described the purchase as merely a \u201ctest,\u201d suggesting that Intesa may eventually acquire more bitcoin on behalf of some of its wealthy clients.<\/p>\n
It could be a harbinger of things to come.<\/p>\n
After years of keeping their distance, movers and shakers in the traditional financial world appear ready to play ball when it comes to cryptocurrencies and stablecoins. (Stablecoins are a type of cryptocurrency designed to maintain a stable value over time; they are typically pegged 1:1 to the value of traditional currencies like the US dollar or the euro.)<\/p>\n
\u201cThe financial services industry is on the verge of entering the crypto economy,\u201d Fortune reported Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan saying in February. And in March, Fidelity Investments, one of the world\u2019s largest asset managers, was reported to be in advanced testing of its own stablecoin.<\/p>\n
Competitive pressure and the need for a fast time to market are key drivers\u2014fueled by rising demand from clients, including corporates, and by a shifting macroeconomic backdrop marked by Trump-era tariff threats and doubts about the global dollar system\u2019s resilience. Together, these forces are pushing banks and asset managers to hedge geopolitical risk and tap new revenue streams through digital assets.<\/p>\n
The Intesa purchase was made through Boerse Stuttgart Digital, which recently became Europe\u2019s first regulated exchange for trading digital assets under the EU\u2019s new Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA) framework. The exchange is a unit of venerable Boerse Stuttgart Group, Europe\u2019s sixth-largest exchange group.<\/p>\n
\u201cInstitutional adoption of crypto assets is gaining momentum across Europe,\u201d observes Joaqu\u00edn Sastre Ib\u00e1\u00f1ez, chief revenue officer at Boerse Stuttgart Digital. He expects other European banks and institutional investors to follow Intesa\u2019s footsteps.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn Germany, for example, we have recently partnered with DekaBank to offer crypto trading to institutional clients,\u201d Sastre Ib\u00e1\u00f1ez notes. Many financial institutions had been waiting for a clear regulatory framework before introducing crypto offerings to their customers, which MiCA now provides.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not just in Europe that the crypto temperature is rising. In early March, the US established a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, and many individual US states, most notably Texas, could soon have bitcoin reserves of their own. Pension funds, too, are \u201cdipping their toes into buying bitcoin,\u201d The Financial Times reported in January, including funds in the UK and Australia, \u201ca sign that even typically staid corners of finance are finding it hard to ignore the potential outsized returns from cryptocurrencies.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the US, stablecoin legislation moved out of a key Senate committee with bipartisan support in mid-March and passage is soon expected. The legislation sets clear rules for stablecoin issuers, requiring full reserve backing and compliance with anti-money laundering laws to safeguard consumers and reinforce the US dollar\u2019s global standing. Stablecoins often act as a bridge between crypto and national currencies; they share the same underlying blockchain technology as tokens like bitcoin and Ethereum.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe US\u2019s pro-crypto stance is reshaping the global financial landscape by integrating digital assets into the mainstream economic agenda,\u201d says Federico Brokate, head of US Business at 21Shares, a cryptocurrency exchange-traded fund (ETF) provider based in Switzerland.<\/p>\n
The creation of the US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve along with the US Digital Asset Stockpile, consisting of tokens other than bitcoin, marks a significant shift in institutional perception, he adds, \u201cpositioning cryptocurrencies as essential financial instruments rather than speculative assets. This move not only signals long-term confidence in digital assets but also sets a precedent for other nations.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u201cDigital assets are here to stay, as convergence of traditional and digital finance advances.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/p>\n Joaquin Sastre Ibanez, <\/strong>Boerse Stuttgart Digital <\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Two major pension funds in the US have already made significant investments in spot bitcoin ETFs: The State of Michigan Department of the Treasury and the State of Wisconsin Investment Board. The latter has committed more than $300 million to IBIT, BlackRock\u2019s spot bitcoin ETF.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe expect this trend to continue among pensions as regulatory clarity continues to progress in the US,\u201d says Brokate. Institutional interest extends to other regions as well, he adds; Abu Dhabi\u2019s Sovereign Wealth Fund has invested more than $450 million in IBIT.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Simon McLoughlin, CEO of UPHOLD, a cryptocurrency trading platform, sees stablecoins in particular as playing a key role in transforming global finance. \u201cStablecoins are the future of money,\u201d he says, \u201cso much so, in fact, that in 10 years\u2019 time, we won\u2019t even refer to stablecoins. They will just be money.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cStablecoin issuance has grown rapidly in recent years and become a significant part of the financial system,\u201d S&P Global Ratings concluded in a February report. \u201cStablecoins could enable smoother transactions, faster settlements, and lower costs for cross-border payments\u2014especially in areas that lack access to traditional banking infrastructure.\u201d<\/p>\n Indeed, stablecoin market capitalization reached $230 billion in mid-March, up 56% from a year earlier; analysts at Bernstein predict market cap could exceed $500 billion by yearend.<\/p>\n Fintechs like Tether (USDT) and Circle (USDC) are pioneering the issuance of stablecoins, but other issuers may soon jump in.<\/p>\n \u201cThere will be stablecoins run by municipalities, businesses, and other organizations,\u201d McLoughlin predicts. \u201cBut most importantly of all, there will be stablecoins issued directly by banks. We will have branded money.\u201d<\/p>\n CFOs may have to adjust their thinking accordingly, he adds.<\/p>\n \u201cCFOs need to start preparing now for a future where some of the functions of corporate treasury and international accounting are fulfilled on the blockchain,\u201d McLoughlin said. When it comes to international payments, for instance, \u201cif one of your rivals is using stablecoins to move money around the world and your business is not, you will be at a distinct disadvantage.\u201d<\/p>\n What about cryptocurrencies proper, like bitcoin? Unlike stablecoins, their market prices have always been volatile. But as more traditional financial firms embrace the crypto economy, those wild price gyrations may flatten out, anticipates Geoff Kendrick, global head of digital assets research at Standard Chartered.<\/p>\n \u201cInstitutional buyers are less likely to sell on bad days than are leveraged retail buyers,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Moreover, custody solutions from traditional financial institutions like BNY Mellon or State Street could make storing crypto easier and more secure than current offerings by crypto-focused fintechs. Regulatory clarity in places like the US, too, could lead to less volatility while helping to \u201cremove FTX issues,\u201d says Kendrick, referring to the market-roiling collapse of the Bahamas-based cryptocurrency exchange in November 2022.<\/p>\n More institutions are interested today in both selling crypto to retail clients and diversification for their own corporate treasuries, says Boerse Stuttgart Digital\u2019s Sastre Ib\u00e1\u00f1ez. His group is partnering with Germany\u2019s DZ Bank, for instance, to offer its retail clients direct access to crypto trading and custody.<\/p>\n If cryptocurrencies become less volatile, more pension funds and insurance companies could dive in, too. In December, one of Australia\u2019s largest superannuation fund providers, AMP Limited, made a A$27 million ($16.4 million) investment in bitcoin futures, which CIO Anna Shelley described in a commentary on AMP\u2019s website as a \u201ccautious step\u201d into bitcoin futures for members. Bitcoin could potentially be used as an alternative store of value to gold, she wrote, on the negative side, bitcoin \u201coffers no yield.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, many of Australia\u2019s super funds\u2014a category that includes pension funds\u2014\u201calready invest in many assets that have no yield,\u201d Shelley noted in her commentary, \u201csuch as foreign currencies, derivatives and commodities, and even some listed companies [that] make no profit and deliver no dividends.\u201d<\/p>\n Some partisans set crypto\u2019s sights even higher; one day, they say, central banks might invest in cryptocurrencies for diversification.<\/p>\n \u201cCentral banks considering investing in bitcoin could be emboldened by the fact the US government is going to at least hold on to the 270,000 bitcoins it currently owns, and potentially buy more at some stage,\u201d Kendrick wrote in a January note, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.<\/p>\n Elsewhere, Ale\u0161 Michl, who heads the Czech National Bank, told The Financial Times in January that he would present a plan to his board to invest in bitcoin as a way to diversify the central bank\u2019s reserves.<\/p>\n This proposal drew a flutter of scornful reactions. \u201cMichl is mixing up the role of a central banker with that of a portfolio manager,\u201d Elias Haddad, senior market strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman, told Bloomberg.<\/p>\n Indeed, some of this blue-sky speculation may not be accounting for all the risks.<\/p>\n \u201cStablecoins, issued by private entities, can fail like banks, risking de-pegging,\u201d says Hanna Halaburda, associate professor at New York University\u2019s Stern School of Business. Then, too, stablecoins are traded on blockchain networks, \u201coffering decentralization and programmability but facing congestion risks and high costs.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition, she notes, stablecoins have limited practical use in the US and some other countries where \u201ctraditional banking services are already efficient and reliable.\u201d The largest demand for US-denominated stablecoins is overseas, \u201cparticularly in regions with unstable currencies or costly financial infrastructure.\u201d<\/p>\n In many African countries, for example, \u201cstablecoins provide a way to hold digital dollars, preserving purchasing power in economies plagued by inflation,\u201d Halaburda notes. \u201cThey are also widely used for cross-border transactions, offering a faster and often cheaper alternative to traditional remittance services.\u201d<\/p>\n But if a US central bank digital currency (CBDC)\u2014a digital dollar\u2014were ever made accessible internationally, that \u201ccould potentially serve these roles even more effectively,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n CBDCs are not cryptocurrencies, of course, but they are digital money like stablecoins: and the two may be in competition. Facebook\u2019s Libra stablecoin, announced back in 2019, spurred digital currency awareness among central banks. The project was later abandoned, but as of February 2025, 134 countries and currency unions, representing 98% of global GDP, were exploring a CBDC, according to the Atlantic Council\u2019s Central Bank Digital Currency Tracker.<\/p>\n CBDCs remain controversial, however, particularly in Western countries, where they come freighted with privacy questions. In January, an executive order by President Trump banned research and development for a US CBDC.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s rejection of a digital dollar, and his embrace of stablecoins, appears to have spurred the EU to speed up implementation of its own CBDC project. European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said recently that Europe needs to push fast on the digital euro.<\/p>\n \u201cAccelerating its implementation suggests that [EU] policymakers see strategic value in a CBDC, particularly in a rapidly evolving global financial landscape,\u201d says Annabelle Rau, an associate at McDermott Will & Emery in Germany. \u201cHowever, its success will depend on striking the right balance between innovation, privacy, and financial stability.\u201d<\/p>\n The EU has set a high standard for privacy with its General Data Protection Regulation, Rau notes. \u201cNonetheless, public trust will be crucial, and addressing concerns around data access, anonymity, and surveillance risks will require clear legal safeguards and transparent communication from policymakers.\u201d<\/p>\n Stablecoins and CBDCs might eventually co-exist, although the importance of their role could vary from country to country, Halaburda suggests.<\/p>\n \u201cChina favors state-controlled rails and discourages blockchain-based finance, making the digital yuan likely to prevail,\u201d Rau says. \u201cThe EU is regulating stablecoins under MiCA while taking a cautious approach to the digital euro, allowing both to coexist. In the US, stablecoins thrive in the absence of a CBDC, though pending regulations could either strengthen their role or constrain them in favor of a digital dollar.\u201d<\/p>\n Whether it be cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, or central bank digital currencies, a consensus appears to be forming that \u201cdigital assets are here to stay, with mainstream adoption accelerating as the convergence of traditional and digital finance advances every day,\u201d Boerse Stuttgart Digital\u2019s Sastre Ib\u00e1\u00f1ez says. If so, \u201ccorporate CFOs should be aware of the growing importance and adapt by integrating digital assets into their financial strategies while ensuring compliance with evolving regulations.\u201d<\/p>\n Fundamental challenges remain, particularly in governance, risk management, and regulatory oversight. \u201cWhile some convergence is taking place, particularly in areas such as digital securities and asset tokenization, it is likely that elements of both [crypto and traditional currency] systems will continue to coexist rather than fully merge in the near future,\u201d says Rau.<\/p>\n McLoughlin, at UPHOLD, remains buoyant. Consider only the trillions of dollars locked up in banks today to facilitate international transactions, he argues. Indeed, $10 trillion are held in nostro\/vostro accounts globally, according to a December report from Bitso Business. \u201cImagine,\u201d McLoughlin suggests, \u201cwhat we could do if those funds were available to power growth instead.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Banks, asset managers, and corporates push crypto and digital currencies into the mainstream amid shifting financial dynamics. The argest bank in Italy, Intesa Sanpaolo, quietly purchased $1 million worth of bitcoin in early January. The move was not publicly disclosed; it surfaced in an internal bank memo. When pressed by reporters, CEO Carlo Messina described […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":219355,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[93],"tags":[25859,6792,824,10924,5714,2083],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-219354","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-finance","tag-assets","tag-break","tag-digital","tag-finance","tag-global","tag-magazine"],"yoast_head":"\n
\n<\/p>\nThe Future Of Money<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/s44650.pcdn.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Simon-McLoughlin-edited.jpg\")
Are Institutions Making Crypto Safer? <\/h2>\n
Blue-Sky Speculation And Counterparty Risks<\/h2>\n
CBDCs vs Stablecoins<\/h2>\n
Here To Stay? <\/h2>\n