PakGazette — Intesa Sanpaolo (OTC:) SpA, Italy’s largest banking group, has bought for the first time in a cash transaction. The bank purchased approximately €1 million ($1 million) worth of cryptocurrencies, marking its deepest foray into the asset class.
The purchase was made on Monday and the bank acquired 11 Bitcoin, according to Niccolò Bardoscia, the bank’s director of investments and digital asset trading. Bardoscia revealed the information in an internal email, which later appeared on the online forum 4chan. An Intesa spokesperson declined to comment on the matter.
In November, Bloomberg reported that Intesa’s cryptocurrency desk had received the necessary internal approvals and had established the necessary technical systems to make spot cryptocurrency purchases. In 2023, the bank had established its own cryptocurrency trading desk within its corporate and investment banking division.
Prior to this purchase, the bank’s crypto activities were limited to trading in crypto options, futures, and exchange-traded funds.
This development comes as other leading financial companies are also expanding their crypto operations.
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