A recent report from the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) reveals that 19 major banks have invested heavily in crypto, to the tune of €9.4 billion, with a marked presence of Ripple alongside giants Bitcoin and Ethereum .
Crypto XRP gains popularity with banks
While the banking sector has long been reluctant about cryptocurrencies, it seems that mentalities have radically changed. According to the recent report from the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), 19 major banks have invested heavily in crypto, to the tune of €9.4 billion.
Unsurprisingly, Bitcoin (31%) and Ethereum (22%) dominate the portfolios, but XRP also emerges with 2% of total investments, or 188 million euros.
The growing presence of XRP in the investment strategies of these institutions is remarkable. Even though it remains behind BTC and ETH, the XRP token rises to third place among the preferred cryptocurrencies. This interest can be explained by several factors.
On the one hand, Ripple has won several legal victories against the SEC, reassuring investors about the long-term viability of XRP. On the other hand, Ripple continues to expand its cross-border payment services to new banks around the world. Its RippleNet network, which uses XRP, is now accessible in several countries.
Other altcoins emerging in banks
Besides the dominant trio BTC-ETH-XRP, the report of BCBS reveals the growing presence of other crypto-assets such as DOT, ADA or LTC in bank wallets.
Together, they still only represent 5% of allocations, but it demonstrates that financial institutions are starting to diversify their digital assets beyond dominant coins like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
The growing integration of public blockchains into banking strategies reflects a paradigm shift: banks are increasingly adopting the innovations of decentralized finance.
With nearly 10 billion euros already invested in crypto, there is no doubt that this is only the beginning. Institutional investors’ appetite for these new digital assets will likely only grow over the coming years. The banking sector could soon become one of the main drivers of mass adoption of cryptocurrencies like XRP.
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