Italy’s largest bank, Intesa Sanpaolo, made its first bitcoin transaction for its own account on Monday, investing 1 million euros ($1.03 million) in the world’s largest digital currency, according to an internal memo.
Intesa set up a proprietary trading desk for digital assets in 2023 and last year began processing spot transactions with cryptocurrencies.
“As of today, January 13, 2025, Intesa Sanpaolo owns 11 bitcoins,” said the internal message, a copy of which was seen by Reuters.
Bitcoin’s value more than doubles in 2024, driven by the U.S. regulator’s approval of exchange-traded funds tied to its spot price, and optimism about easing regulatory hurdles under the leadership of future US President Donald Trump.
As bitcoin flirts with $100,000, some analysts expect its value to more than double by the end of the year.
The operation carried out by Intesa on Monday was first reported by the Italian daily La Stampa. (1 dollar = 0.9747 euros)
