Blab Crypto
Intesa Sanpaolo Cuts BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Holdings by 94% and Triples Staked Ethereum Position
Intesa Sanpaolo, Italy’s largest banking group, dramatically trimmed its exposure to BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) while boosting its stake in the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHB). The changes, disclosed in the bank’s Q2 2026 Form 13F, signal a strategic pivot toward yield‑bearing crypto assets.
In the second quarter, Intesa’s IBIT position fell by 93.7 percent, leaving 40,723 shares worth roughly $1.36 million as of June 30—down from 646,809 shares in the previous quarter. The bank’s call option on IBIT shrank 99.3 percent, from an underlying 2.5 million shares to just 18,000, while a new put covering 500,000 IBIT shares appeared, a hedge that gains when Bitcoin prices decline.
Conversely, Intesa tripled its ETHB holdings, moving from 116,200 to 349,600 shares—a value of about $7.1 million. The bank also cut its position in the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF from 2,817 shares to seven. It retained 3.47 million shares of the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), worth $67.6 million, which remains its largest crypto‑ETF holding.
Other disclosed positions include an unchanged $14.4 million stake in the Grayscale XRP Trust and a new $293,190 investment in the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust. Because the 13F form captures only long positions in U.S.‑listed securities, the bank’s net crypto exposure—including short and option positions—remains partially opaque.
Intesa is not alone in rebalancing its crypto‑ETF portfolio. Jane Street, a prominent market maker, reduced its IBIT common stock by 71 percent in Q1, nearly doubled its iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) stake to 11.1 million shares, and increased its Fidelity Ethereum Fund from $3.1 million to $43.6 million.
The move toward staked‑Ethereum products aligns with the fact that BlackRock’s ETHB earns network rewards on its holdings—an upside that Bitcoin‑based ETFs cannot provide. Flow data for the same period shows heavy net outflows from U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs, with a record $4.5 billion leaving the products in June alone.
While Intesa’s new put on IBIT suggests a defensive stance on Bitcoin, its continued investment in ARKB and the Grayscale XRP Trust indicates that it has not abandoned Bitcoin exposure entirely. The shift may reflect a broader institutional preference for yield‑bearing crypto assets.
Additional Q2 disclosures will be filed before the August 14 deadline, potentially clarifying whether Intesa’s pivot signals an early trend among large financial institutions. Market observers will also monitor further changes in other banks’ crypto‑ETF holdings and any regulatory developments that could influence institutional crypto exposure.
At present, Intesa’s crypto‑ETF portfolio is heavily weighted toward Ethereum staking and Bitcoin spot products, with a modest presence in other digital assets. The exact net exposure remains uncertain due to the limitations of the 13F filing, but the disclosed changes suggest a strategic realignment toward assets that offer staking rewards.
These developments underscore the growing importance of yield‑bearing crypto products in institutional portfolios and the continued volatility of Bitcoin‑based ETFs in the current market environment.
In the second quarter, Intesa’s IBIT position fell by 93.7 percent, leaving 40,723 shares worth roughly $1.36 million as of June 30—down from 646,809 shares in the previous quarter. The bank’s call option on IBIT shrank 99.3 percent, from an underlying 2.5 million shares to just 18,000, while a new put covering 500,000 IBIT shares appeared, a hedge that gains when Bitcoin prices decline.
Conversely, Intesa tripled its ETHB holdings, moving from 116,200 to 349,600 shares—a value of about $7.1 million. The bank also cut its position in the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF from 2,817 shares to seven. It retained 3.47 million shares of the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), worth $67.6 million, which remains its largest crypto‑ETF holding.
Other disclosed positions include an unchanged $14.4 million stake in the Grayscale XRP Trust and a new $293,190 investment in the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust. Because the 13F form captures only long positions in U.S.‑listed securities, the bank’s net crypto exposure—including short and option positions—remains partially opaque.
Intesa is not alone in rebalancing its crypto‑ETF portfolio. Jane Street, a prominent market maker, reduced its IBIT common stock by 71 percent in Q1, nearly doubled its iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) stake to 11.1 million shares, and increased its Fidelity Ethereum Fund from $3.1 million to $43.6 million.
The move toward staked‑Ethereum products aligns with the fact that BlackRock’s ETHB earns network rewards on its holdings—an upside that Bitcoin‑based ETFs cannot provide. Flow data for the same period shows heavy net outflows from U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs, with a record $4.5 billion leaving the products in June alone.
While Intesa’s new put on IBIT suggests a defensive stance on Bitcoin, its continued investment in ARKB and the Grayscale XRP Trust indicates that it has not abandoned Bitcoin exposure entirely. The shift may reflect a broader institutional preference for yield‑bearing crypto assets.
Additional Q2 disclosures will be filed before the August 14 deadline, potentially clarifying whether Intesa’s pivot signals an early trend among large financial institutions. Market observers will also monitor further changes in other banks’ crypto‑ETF holdings and any regulatory developments that could influence institutional crypto exposure.
At present, Intesa’s crypto‑ETF portfolio is heavily weighted toward Ethereum staking and Bitcoin spot products, with a modest presence in other digital assets. The exact net exposure remains uncertain due to the limitations of the 13F filing, but the disclosed changes suggest a strategic realignment toward assets that offer staking rewards.
These developments underscore the growing importance of yield‑bearing crypto products in institutional portfolios and the continued volatility of Bitcoin‑based ETFs in the current market environment.
