Wells Fargo's $2.5T Vault Now Has a Crypto Side Hustle 🏦💰

Wells Fargo disclosed significant cryptocurrency exposure through exchange-traded funds and equities in a recent SEC filing, revealing positions tied to Bitcoin, Ethereum (ETH), Solana, Strategy (MSTR), Bitmine Immersion Technologies (BMNR) and additional crypto-related stocks. The bank, which manages $2.5 trillion in assets under management, detailed its holdings for the most recent quarter.

The filings show the bank holds 6.5 million shares in BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF (IBIT). That position, however, represents a quarter-on-quarter decrease of 75,102 shares. Wells Fargo simultaneously opened a new call position and increased its put position in IBIT, and it reduced exposure to the Invesco Galaxy Bitcoin ETF (BTCO), Ark 21Shares Bitcoin ETF and Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC). At the same time, Bitcoin exposure rose through the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust, Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) and Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), with BITB shares climbing 24% compared with the prior quarter.

Wells Fargo's Ethereum ETF holdings expanded sharply during the period, with shares of BlackRock's iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) rising 65% to more than 1.10 million shares valued at $17.56 million. The bank also reported 25,096 shares of the Bitwise Ethereum ETF (ETHW), 9,444 shares of the Fidelity Ethereum Fund (FETH) and holdings in additional Ethereum-focused ETFs. Wells Fargo additionally maintained a Solana ETF allocation, recording 12,436 shares of the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF (BSOL), the largest spot Solana ETF by assets.

Beyond the funds, Wells Fargo disclosed direct equity stakes in Strategy (MSTR), the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, and in Bitmine Immersion Technologies (BMNR), a publicly traded Ethereum treasury company. The filings did not specify the size of those equity positions, and Wells Fargo has not publicly commented on the disclosures.

The disclosures