Two of North America's largest banks, Bank of America and Royal Bank of Canada, have revealed exposure to cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds and crypto-linked equities in their latest quarterly 13F filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The disclosures, covering Q1 2026, add fresh evidence of deepening institutional engagement with digital assets.
Bank of America's 13F-HR report showed positions in spot or futures-based crypto ETFs and shares of publicly traded companies with substantial crypto operations. While the filing does not break out specific tickers or amounts, it continues a pattern set by major banks since spot Bitcoin ETFs debuted in January 2024. Such filings are closely watched as a transparency mechanism into how capital flows into crypto products from institutions managing over $100 million in qualifying assets.
The Royal Bank of Canada went further by explicitly listing a holding of 2,000 shares of the Bitwise XRP ETF, valued at approximately $30,000. Although the position is small relative to RBC's $570 billion portfolio, it is notable as the first publicly reported XRP-linked investment by a top-five Canadian bank. RBC is not new to XRP's ecosystem; it was a founding member of the Global Payments Steering Group that developed governance around Ripple's payment technology. The bank's own research previously highlighted XRP's potential to cut cross-border payment costs by 46%.
These filings are just snapshots, not directional bets. Institutional adoption often begins with small, compliance-testing allocations before meaningful capital is deployed—a trajectory seen with early Bitcoin ETF positions. The cumulative effect of banks like Bank of America and RBC establishing even modest crypto ETF stakes normalizes digital assets within traditional finance infrastructure.
The SEC-mandated 13F disclosures provide one of the few public windows into institutional crypto appetite. With each quarter, market observers can track whether participation is expanding. The full details of the filings are accessible via the SEC's EDGAR database.
