Bitcoin (BTC) was trading near $77,619 on Tuesday, and one of Wall Street's largest banks has chosen this stretch of the market to lay out its case for cryptocurrency exposure among affluent investors. Citi's wealth division has published a report pitching spot Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to its wealth clients.

The publication, titled “Expanding the Investable Universe: Introduction to Crypto ETFs,” was released in October, according to COINOTAG. As its title indicates, the report functions as an introduction to crypto ETFs, framing spot Bitcoin and Ethereum products as part of the investable universe available to the bank's wealth clientele. An introductory report of this kind places the asset class in the same research channel through which wealth clients typically receive material on stocks, bonds, and conventional funds, rather than leaving it to crypto-native platforms.

This content was first published on COINOTAG.

Background: Spot Crypto ETFs in the United States

Spot Bitcoin ETFs were cleared by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and began trading in January 2024, giving U.S. investors their first exchange-listed funds that hold Bitcoin directly rather than derivatives tied to it. The approvals followed years of SEC rejections of earlier spot Bitcoin ETF proposals. Spot Ethereum ETFs followed later that year and launched on U.S. exchanges in July 2024.

ETF shares trade on traditional exchanges and can be bought and sold through standard brokerage accounts. The structure provides exposure to the underlying cryptocurrencies without requiring investors to open accounts on crypto-native platforms, manage private keys, or self-custody digital assets directly. For wealth clients, that means crypto exposure can sit within the same brokerage accounts, statements, and advisory workflows already used for conventional portfolios.

Since these products launched, major asset managers—including BlackRock and Fidelity—have sponsored them and a number of large financial institutions have begun incorporating crypto ETFs into the research and investment options presented to their clients. Citi's October publication is the most recent example of a Wall Street bank formally introducing the vehicle to its wealth client base. For observers tracking institutional adoption, further research and client-facing materials from other bank wealth divisions would be the next data points in that pattern.