BlockBeats News, May 17th, Italy's largest bank Intesa Sanpaolo increased its cryptocurrency-related holdings in the first quarter of 2026 from around $100 million at the end of 2025 to around $235 million. The bank increased its holdings of ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF and BlackRock IBIT, and for the first time allocated Ethereum assets through BlackRock iShares Staked Ethereum Trust, while adding around $26 million in Grayscale XRP Trust ETF holdings.

In addition, Intesa also established a bullish position in IBIT for the first time, added 165,600 shares of BitGo stock, and exited positions related to Bitmine. Its Solana-related holdings were significantly reduced, with holdings in Bitwise Solana Staking ETF decreasing from 266,300 shares to 2,817 shares.

Reports indicate that Intesa had previously confirmed that the related cryptocurrency assets are primarily used for proprietary trading. Last month, Ripple also announced that it would provide digital asset custody services to the bank. (Cointelegraph)