Crypto Quill

UBS Group CEO Sergio Ermotti just confirmed the Swiss banking giant is actively looking at letting everyday wealthy clients buy and hold cryptocurrencies directly. The surprise statement marks a sharp turn for one of the world’s most conservative banks and signals that even the old guard of finance now sees digital assets as mainstream.

Ermotti made the remarks on February 4 during a media round-table in Zurich. He told reporters the bank is studying ways to offer crypto exposure to private clients after years of keeping the asset class at arm’s length.

The main trigger is clearer regulation in the United States. Lawmakers passed the GENIUS Act late last year, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has green-lit national banks to custody digital assets and run blockchain nodes. Those moves removed the biggest legal roadblocks that kept European giants like UBS on the sidelines.

One analyst who covers Swiss banks said the shift was almost inevitable. “When U.S. regulators give the green light, global players have to follow or lose clients to competitors,” he explained.

What Direct Access Could Look Like

UBS already lets institutional and ultra-rich clients trade bitcoin and ethereum through regulated funds. The new plan would go much further and open the door to millions of individual investors in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

Sources inside the bank say several options are on the table:

• Direct custody of major coins inside UBS accounts
• Spot crypto trading alongside stocks and bonds
• Staking services for proof-of-stake tokens
• Crypto-linked savings or lending products

No final decision has been made, and any rollout would first happen in Switzerland where rules are friendliest.

How the Market Reacted Instantly

Bitcoin jumped more than three percent within hours of Ermotti’s comments. Traders saw the news as another stamp of approval from traditional finance.

Shares of Coinbase and MicroStrategy also climbed in after-hours trading. One crypto exchange executive called it “the clearest sign yet that banks are coming.”

The Long Road That Led Here

UBS spent years warning clients about crypto risks. In 2021 the bank blocked staff from giving advice on digital assets and refused to custody them. The collapse of FTX in 2022 only hardened that stance.

Everything changed in 2024. Donald Trump won the U.S. election on a pro-crypto platform. Regulators fast-tracked friendly rules. BlackRock and Fidelity launched spot bitcoin ETFs that now hold billions of dollars. Client demand exploded at the same time.

A recent UBS investor survey showed more than forty percent of wealthy clients in Asia and Europe want direct crypto exposure. Many threatened to move money to smaller digital-private banks if UBS stayed out.

What Happens Next and When

Ermotti stressed that safety comes first. The bank will only move forward once it is fully satisfied with custody solutions, anti-money-laundering controls, and tax reporting.

Most experts expect a limited pilot program to launch in late 2025 or early 2026, starting with bitcoin and ethereum for Swiss clients.

The move could spark a wave of copycat announcements from rivals like Julius Baer, Credit Suisse’s former private-banking arm now owned by UBS, and even Deutsche Bank.

UBS now stands at a turning point. For decades it built its name on rock-solid caution. Letting millions of clients buy bitcoin directly is the boldest bet in its 160-year history, but one that could keep the bank relevant in a world where younger millionaires see crypto as normal as gold once was. The old walls between traditional banking and digital assets are crumbling fast, and UBS just admitted it no longer wants to stand on the wrong side of history.