🚨 **JUST IN:** Bank of America has taken a landmark step by authorizing its **15,000+ financial advisers** to actively propose **Bitcoin exposure** to clients as of **January 5, 2026**. $BTC
Under this new directive, advisers operating within **Merrill**, **BofA Private Bank**, and **Merrill Edge** can now recommend a **1%–4% portfolio share** in select **spot Bitcoin ETFs**, including **BlackRock’s IBIT, Fidelity’s FBTC, Bitwise’s BITB, and Grayscale’s BTC Mini Trust**. This marks a clear transition from a **client-initiated model** to an **adviser-driven strategy**, potentially unlocking inflows from a portion of the bank’s **$2.67 trillion AUM** into compliant digital assets. $ETH
Zooming out, this decision signals the formal launch of the **2026 institutional adoption phase**, placing Bank of America alongside firms such as **Morgan Stanley and Vanguard**, which have also moved toward crypto-linked offerings. With the **Clarity Act** likely to strengthen regulatory certainty this year and institutional distribution pressure largely played out, this new demand framework could be the key force pushing Bitcoin beyond its prior peak in **H1 2026**.
The entry of this “thundering herd” confirms a major transformation: crypto is no longer fringe—it is becoming a **core component of global wealth management**. $XLM
