Intesa Sanpaolo Cuts Bitcoin ETF Stake by 94% While Tripling Ether Position

Woofun AI reports that Intesa Sanpaolo, Italy’s largest banking group, executed a sharp strategic pivot in its digital asset portfolio during the second quarter, tripling its position in an iShares staked Ether exchange-traded fund while drastically reducing its exposure to the iShares spot Bitcoin ETF.

The bank’s filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday revealed holdings of 349,600 shares in the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHB), valued at $7.1 million as of June 30, a significant increase from the 116,200 shares worth $3.15 million held at the end of March. Conversely, Intesa cut its iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) shareholding by approximately 94%, dropping from 646,809 shares to just 40,723 shares.

Woofun AI data shows the bank retained 3.47 million shares of the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), valued at $67.6 million, which remained its largest crypto-linked holding despite a 4% decline from the first quarter.

Adjustments extended to altcoin and equity positions, where the Grayscale XRP Trust ETF (GXRP) stake remained unchanged at 712,319 shares. The bank nearly doubled its BitGo stake to 323,000 shares while simultaneously reducing its Coinbase position to 7,000 shares.

This reallocation underscores how banks and other institutional investors are increasingly utilizing Crypto ETFs to gain exposure to digital assets through regulated securities products. Such instruments allow institutions to bypass the complex custody, compliance, and operational requirements associated with holding cryptocurrencies directly.