UBS considers crypto trading offering for some private clients: Bloomberg

UBS Group has been preparing to offer cryptocurrency trading to some private banking clients, signaling a potential expansion of its digital asset strategy at a time when global banks have been accelerating their moves into crypto.

With an estimated $4.7 trillion in client assets as of Sept. 30, the Swiss banking giant has been selecting partners for a crypto trading offering, according to Bloomberg. Discussions have been ongoing for several months, though UBS has not made a final decision on how or when the service would be rolled out, the report said.

If implemented, the initiative would represent a notable step for UBS, the world’s largest wealth manager, moving beyond pilots and indirect exposure toward direct crypto trading for a segment of its private banking clientele. The scope of the offering would be limited initially and would likely not amount to a broad retail launch.

UBS’s latest plans would build on several years of experimentation with blockchain-based financial products.

The bank has previously focused on tokenization rather than spot crypto trading, including the launch of a tokenized money market fund on Ethereum and pilots using blockchain infrastructure to streamline fund issuance and settlement.

UBS has also allowed select wealthy clients in Hong Kong to trade crypto futures-based exchange-traded funds, offering exposure without direct ownership of digital assets.

The measured approach has mirrored the strategy of many large banks, which have prioritized regulated products and institutional use cases as regulatory clarity has improved. In recent months, peers including Morgan Stanley and Standard Chartered have outlined plans to expand crypto trading and prime brokerage services for clients, reflecting growing demand from institutional and high-net-worth investors.