Bitwise has assembled a ranking of traditional banks with the widest-ranging cryptocurrency exposure, and the names at the top read less like a fintech disruptor list and more like the guest roster at a Davos dinner party. BNY Mellon and JPMorgan Chase, two institutions that collectively hold the gravitational center of global finance, lead the pack across categories including trading, payments, ETFs, and tokenization.
The heavyweights and their crypto footprints
BNY Mellon, the world’s largest custodian bank with roughly $59 trillion in assets under custody and administration, has arguably made the most aggressive moves. The bank announced plans to launch Bitcoin custody services in Abu Dhabi, announced on May 7, 2026. Back in February 2024, the bank said it would hold, transfer, and issue digital currencies based on client demand.
The crown jewel in BNY Mellon’s crypto story might be its role servicing the iShares Bitcoin ETP, ticker IB1T. That product hit approximately $100 billion in assets under management during Q4 2025, making it the fastest-growing ETP in history.
JPMorgan Chase, meanwhile, has taken a slightly different but equally ambitious path. The bank has built out blockchain infrastructure through its Onyx division, explored tokenization of traditional assets, and maintained one of the most active institutional trading desks for crypto-adjacent products on Wall Street.
Why banks went from skeptics to builders
When spot Bitcoin ETFs launched in the US, they created an immediate need for institutional-grade custody and settlement infrastructure. The crypto ETP market saw significant innovation throughout 2025, including new staking mechanisms and alternative coin index ETPs, all of which required traditional financial plumbing to function.
BNY Mellon’s expansion into Abu Dhabi is emblematic of a broader geographic play. The UAE has positioned itself as one of the most crypto-friendly regulatory jurisdictions in the world, and global banks are racing to establish footholds there.
What this means for investors
BNY Mellon’s custody business generates fees based on assets held. When the iShares Bitcoin ETP grows to $100 billion, that translates directly into custodial revenue.
Bitwise’s ranking also exposes concentration risk. If the institutions with the broadest crypto exposure are also the ones deemed “too big to fail,” then crypto’s integration into traditional finance creates new systemic linkages that regulators haven’t fully mapped. A severe crypto downturn wouldn’t just hit digital asset prices. It would ripple through the custody, trading, and ETP businesses of the world’s largest banks.
