Intesa Sanpaolo Shifts Crypto Portfolio, Dumps Bitcoin for Ethereum

Italy's largest banking group, Intesa Sanpaolo, has made significant changes to its cryptocurrency ETF portfolio. The bank's common-share position in the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) fell by 93.7% quarter-over-quarter, dropping to 40,723 shares as of June 30, 2026.

This represents a sharp drawdown for a fund that was once one of the bank's more visible bets on regulated Bitcoin exposure through BlackRock's flagship spot ETF.

Intesa Sanpaolo also reduced its underlying IBIT call option position by 99.3% to just 18,000 shares. However, it established a new put option position equivalent to 500,000 IBIT shares, which could indicate a shift in the bank's strategy for managing Bitcoin price risk.

In contrast, the bank's holding in the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF nearly tripled from 116,200 shares to 349,600 shares, indicating a significant increase in its exposure to Ethereum staking products.