Bank of America Advisers Begin Recommending Crypto ETPs
Bank of America wealth advisers moved from facilitating client-requested Bitcoin ETF access to being allowed to recommend crypto exchange-traded products in client portfolios.
Beginning January 5, 2026, advisers at Bank of America Private Bank, Merrill and Merrill Edge were permitted to recommend selected crypto exchange-traded products to clients without a minimum asset threshold. Bank of America clients who met prior thresholds had already been able to access spot Bitcoin ETFs, but Reuters reported that the new policy changed the adviser's role from executing client requests to affirmatively recommending an allocation.
That distinction mattered because major wealth platforms influence how traditional investors encounter an asset class. Bank of America's investment leadership suggested that a modest 1% to 4% digital-asset allocation could be appropriate for investors comfortable with high volatility. The products were broader than Bitcoin alone, but regulated Bitcoin ETPs were already an established access route and a central part of the shift.
The January policy change therefore represented another step in Bitcoin's movement from tolerated client demand into mainstream advisory practice. The historical point is not simply that a bank offered access; it is that advisers at one of the largest U.S. financial institutions could begin recommending the exposure as part of portfolio construction.