Bank of America will allow wealth advisers to proactively recommend spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds across its US wealth platforms.
The move applies to advisers at Merrill, Bank of America Private Bank and Merrill Edge.
The bank’s chief investment office approved four spot Bitcoin ETFs for adviser coverage.
The approved products include Bitwise Bitcoin ETF, Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund, Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust and BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust.
Bank of America said the selected ETFs are among the most liquid and operationally straightforward Bitcoin products.
Advisers were previously limited to handling client-initiated requests for Bitcoin ETF exposure.
Under the new framework, advisers can recommend Bitcoin allocations as part of standard portfolio discussions.
CIO guidance positions Bitcoin as a roughly 1% to 4% portfolio allocation for suitable clients.
These four names are among the top names running digital asset ETFs due to their experience, assets under management, and track record.
Samar Sen said.
Bank of America is rolling out research, allocation guidance papers and adviser training to support the change.
The bank has not committed to offering Ether or other digital asset ETFs at this stage.
Any expansion beyond Bitcoin is expected to depend on liquidity, market maturity and risk management capabilities.
At the time of reporting, Bitcoin price was $93,608.04.