Israel’s largest bank is preparing to offer Bitcoin, Ether and Solana trading through Galaxy, giving retail and business customers regulated access to digital assets inside the bank’s existing investment app under a partnership announced on August 14, 2026.

Bank Leumi and Galaxy said Leumi and PEPPER customers will be able to buy, hold and sell Bitcoin, Ether and Solana in a dedicated section of the Leumi Trade application, according to Galaxy’s announcement. The rollout is expected to begin in early 2027.

The move is a trading-access play rather than a broad crypto product suite. Customers gain direct spot access to three assets through an interface they already use — not staking, lending or a wider token menu.

What Israel’s Largest Bank Is Rolling Out

The service focuses on three tokens: Bitcoin, Ether and Solana. Leumi and PEPPER users will be able to trade all three within the Leumi Trade app once the offering goes live. PEPPER is Leumi’s digital banking brand, so the rollout spans both the flagship bank and its app-based customer base.

Scale is central to why the launch matters. Bank Leumi reported public deposits of NIS 718.9 billion — roughly $241.4 billion — as of June 30, 2026, in its Q2 2026 results, underscoring the size of the institution now moving into digital asset trading.

The planned launch would make Bank Leumi the first bank in Israel to offer digital asset trading directly to customers, CoinDesk reported.

Why the Galaxy Tie-Up Matters

Galaxy is the enabling partner behind the offering. The bank will use GalaxyOne Institutional for trading, plus Galaxy’s custody infrastructure platform formerly known as GK8 — meaning Leumi is leaning on external crypto rails rather than presenting the launch as a fully in-house build. Galaxy, the digital-asset financial services firm led by Mike Novogratz, acquired GK8 in 2022, so the custody technology underpinning the Leumi offering has been part of Galaxy’s institutional stack for years rather than being built fresh for this deal.

That structure lets a traditional bank enter the market without constructing its own trading and custody stack. Maya Ravia of Bank Leumi framed the product as offering customers “simple, secure, and regulated access” to digital assets.

Galaxy’s Lior Lamesh described the underlying infrastructure as “open, programmable rails,” positioning the custody layer as the operational bridge between the bank’s app and the crypto markets. The arrangement keeps execution and market access, not partner strategy, at the center of the story.

What This Signals for Crypto Access Through Banks

A crypto trading launch from Israel’s largest bank is a traditional-finance adoption signal, echoing moves elsewhere such as JPMorgan’s expanding Bitcoin and Ether ETF positions. Some users may treat bank-based access differently from exchange-based access, valuing the familiarity and regulatory framing of an established deposit-taking institution.

Including Solana alongside Bitcoin and Ether broadens the positioning beyond a single-asset pilot. Adding SOL signals the bank is offering a wider market view than a Bitcoin-only entry point.

The market backdrop is cautious. Bitcoin traded at $62,954 at fetch time, down about 0.2% on the day, while the Fear and Greed Index read 29, classified as Fear.

That subdued mood contrasts with the run-up seen when Bitcoin topped $76,000 earlier in the cycle — a reminder that this distribution move is arriving during a softer market rather than a rally. It also lands amid steady institutional accumulation, with whales adding tens of thousands of BTC through recent uncertainty.

Key open questions remain. No Bank of Israel filing or detailed customer-eligibility terms were disclosed in the announcement, and the timeline is early 2027 rather than immediate, leaving rollout scope, availability and compliance details as the points to watch. Leumi’s first-mover status also sets up a competitive question — whether other Israeli banks pursue similar infrastructure partnerships now that the bank-plus-provider model has been mapped — though no such moves were announced.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency and digital asset markets carry significant risk. Always do your own research before making decisions.