UniCredit, one of Europe’s largest banking groups, is laying the groundwork for a broad digital asset push that could see the Italian lender offer clients crypto custody, brokerage services, tokenized investments and stablecoin functionality through a single technology stack.
According to people familiar with the plans, the bank is in the process of selecting a technology provider capable of supplying infrastructure to hold digital assets and support their purchase and sale. The discussions remain at an early stage, no final decision has been made, and a UniCredit spokesperson declined to comment, but the direction of travel is clear: moving beyond one-off crypto-linked products toward durable in-house capability.
From structured notes to infrastructure
The plans mark an evolution rather than a reversal. UniCredit has already tested demand for digital asset exposure through traditional wrappers, introducing a structured product linked to BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF for professional clients in Italy. The five-year, dollar-denominated certificate offered full capital protection at maturity, letting eligible clients participate in Bitcoin-linked returns without ever holding the cryptocurrency.
The bank has also ventured into blockchain-native issuance, completing Italy’s first tokenized minibond on a public blockchain late last year, using distributed-ledger infrastructure to issue and transfer a conventional financial instrument. The current technology search would extend that foundation into a general-purpose platform for custody and brokerage, with potential applications including tokenized investment products and fixed-income securities, alongside ways for clients to use stablecoins and gain direct crypto exposure.
Specific services have yet to be decided, and the bank could still change or abandon parts of the plan while discussions continue.
The Qivalis connection
Stablecoins are already a formal part of UniCredit’s digital asset strategy. The bank is a founding member of Qivalis, the Amsterdam-based consortium of European banks developing a euro-denominated stablecoin. The project began with 10 institutions including BNP Paribas, ING, Banca Sella, KBC, DekaBank, Danske Bank, SEB, CaixaBank and Raiffeisen Bank International, and expanded in May to 37 banks across 15 European countries after adding ABN AMRO, Rabobank, Nordea and Intesa Sanpaolo.
Qivalis plans to operate as an electronic money institution under Dutch central bank supervision, issuing a MiCA-compliant token backed 1:1 with euros, with initial use cases centered on institutional settlement, treasury operations and tokenized assets. The consortium selected Fireblocks in April to provide tokenization technology, wallet infrastructure, lifecycle management, identity verification and sanctions screening. The token remains scheduled for the second half of 2026, subject to authorization from De Nederlandsche Bank.
UniCredit’s separate technology search could extend to stablecoin use by its own clients, according to the people familiar with the plans, though details on how such services would operate, or whether they would connect with Qivalis, have not been finalized.
MiCA opens the door
The timing reflects the regulatory thaw that the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation has produced across the bloc. MiCA replaced a patchwork of divergent national regimes with a common framework for crypto asset service providers and stablecoin issuers, and European banks have responded by moving into custody, trading and stablecoin infrastructure at an accelerating pace.
Italy’s own Banca Sella, another Qivalis member, has already received Bank of Italy approval to provide crypto custody and transfer services through MiCA’s notification route for credit institutions, establishing a template that larger peers can follow.
UniCredit’s internal thinking on crypto risk has not been uniformly bullish. Deputy vice chair Elena Carletti, who chairs the bank’s board risk committee, warned in May that Europe could face difficulties responding to stress involving crypto-linked bank deposits. Citing the 2023 collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, when Circle disclosed that 3.3 billion USD of reserves backing USDC were trapped at the failed lender, Carletti noted that European authorities could have fewer options than their US counterparts because EU deposit insurance is capped at 100,000 euros per depositor.
Digital capital markets build-out continues
The digital asset exploration sits alongside a broader modernization of UniCredit’s capital markets business. This week the bank announced a minority stake in VC Trade, a German platform focused on lending markets, intended to expand its digital capital markets capabilities. The prospective custody and brokerage infrastructure would add another component to that build-out.
The bank has not disclosed which technology providers are under consideration, the potential cost of the project, or when a selection might be made. Decisions on whether UniCredit will ultimately offer crypto brokerage, custody, stablecoin services or tokenized securities through the system remain open questions.
What is no longer in question is the direction. Between a live tokenized minibond, an ETF-linked structured product, a founding role in Europe’s most ambitious bank-led stablecoin project, and now a search for custody and brokerage infrastructure, UniCredit is assembling the pieces of a full-stack digital asset operation, provided the early-stage discussions turn into a signed contract.
Qivalis going from 10 to 37 banks in a few months and now UniCredit shopping for custody infrastructure. The Italian banks stopped watching from the sidelines and started building.
37 banks is the sales pitch, the pending DNB authorization is the fine print. UniCredit shipping first depends more on Qivalis paperwork than on its own roadmap
Intesa joined Qivalis in May too, so both big Italian retail banks are in the same stablecoin boat now. Going to be an interesting race on who ships first.
spokesperson declined to comment, talks at an early stage, could still abandon parts of the plan. this is a vibe, not a product yet
they already did a capital-protected IBTC certificate for pros and italy’s first tokenized minibond on a public chain. wrappers first, then infrastructure. pattern is consistent
the ibtc certificate had full capital protection at maturity though. that is a bank testing appetite with zero balance sheet risk, the infrastructure build is where actual commitment shows
declined to comment is standard when provider selection is still live, ask anyone who has run bank procurement. the ibtc wrapper and the minibond are the tell, nobody builds those if a custody stack isnt next. mid 2027 for a retail launch though
Qivalis at 37 banks across 15 countries and the token still pending DNB authorization. UniCredit building custody on top of that? the full stack play is real
Carletti citing SVB and the 3.3 billion in USDC reserves stuck there is the most honest thing a bank exec has said about crypto this year. the 100k EU deposit cap is a genuine blind spot
deposit cap comparison is apples to oranges tho, custody under MiCA sits outside deposit insurance. different protections for different risks
and yet the same bank is shopping for custody tech anyway lol. risk committee flags it, business unit builds it, classic
shopping for custody tech before locking product scope is backwards, but the ibtc wrapper and the minibond at least proved internal demand. more than most banks had going in
Banca Sella already got Bank of Italy approval for custody via the MiCA notification route. the template exists, unicredit is just late to its own party
Banca Sella is a fraction of UniCredit in size. arriving second at that scale with custody, brokerage and stablecoin rails in one stack is a completely different bet