PNC Bank becomes the first major US bank to offer Bitcoin within its own platform

PNC Bank becomes 1st major US bank to offer Bitcoin within its own platform

PNC Bank has become the first major bank in the United States to offer direct Bitcoin trading within its own digital platform, a move considered historic in bridging the gap between the traditional financial system and the crypto market.

The new service, launched on Monday, is initially available to eligible clients of PNC Private Bank and was developed in partnership with a crypto asset platform, which provides all the custody infrastructure, trade execution, and regulatory compliance through its Crypto-as-a-Service solution.

The integration allows high-net-worth clients to buy, sell, and hold Bitcoin directly in their existing accounts, without needing to register with exchanges or deal with external platforms. According to PNC executives, the goal is to offer simplified and secure access to the world’s most traded digital asset, keeping up with the growing interest from this segment for alternative wealth diversification options.

William S. Demchak, president and CEO of the bank, stated that the move “responds to the demand for secure and integrated solutions that make sense within clients’ financial planning.”

The partnership between PNC and the platform had been in development since 2021 and was formalized in July of this year, now culminating in the first phase of the offering. The platform’s CEO celebrated the news, highlighting that PNC is the first major American bank to provide this type of service natively.

The institutional representative of the platform emphasized that the collaboration shows how traditional institutions can work with blockchain-native companies to expand access to digital assets “in a secure and compliant manner.”

The move is seen as significant for both sides. For PNC, it represents a structured entry into a rapidly evolving market that is attracting more and more sophisticated investors. For the partner platform, it expands its presence in the US banking system and reinforces its strategy of providing institutional infrastructure for large organizations.

PNC Private Bank serves high-net-worth clients in more than 100 offices and is expected to gradually expand access to the feature. The expectation is that offering Bitcoin within the bank’s own environment will encourage other major US banks to adopt similar models, especially given the growing demand for crypto asset exposure among higher-income investors.