Fidelity clients buy $134M in Bitcoin as institutional demand returns

Fidelity clients bought $134 million in Bitcoin over two days, the latest sign that institutional demand is returning through regulated channels after a steep market slide.

"Custody+ is the product of a multi-year commitment to building infrastructure that matches the speed of our clients' strategies," Amit Agarwal, head of custody at Citi Investor Services, said in the announcement.

The flows landed as two Wall Street giants deepened their digital-asset commitments. BlackRock repeated its call for a 1-2 percent portfolio allocation in a note published Monday, with digital asset executives Robert Mitchnick and Will Su arguing the selloff came from forced selling inside crypto markets rather than a weaker long-term case. Citi unveiled Custody+ on Tuesday, confirming Bitcoin custody will go live later this year. The bank says it spends more than $2 billion a year on its platform strategy, with a custody network covering more than 100 markets.

The timing is notable because Bitcoin still trades about 50 percent below its October 2025 peak, yet the firms building institutional access keep expanding. BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust held over $47 billion in assets by March 2026, and client buying rebounded in late July even with the average US spot ETF buyer sitting 22 percent underwater. Bitcoin traded near $64,708 at press time, having pulled back from an intra-day high of $65,058.

BlackRock Sticks With Its 1-2 Percent Allocation

The refreshed 10-year analysis matched guidance from June, when the firm first told institutions exactly how much Bitcoin to hold. A 1-2 percent slice, funded from stocks, would have improved risk-adjusted returns in a classic 60/40 portfolio, the authors wrote. They also pointed to Bitcoin's low long-term link with stocks and bonds, arguing that periods when it trades in lockstep with equities tend to fade.

The stance matters because of BlackRock's scale. It is the world's largest asset manager, and its iShares Bitcoin Trust held over $47 billion in assets by March 2026. Fidelity currently leads Strategy's Bitcoin Banking Adoption Index, which ranks how far big lenders have moved into Bitcoin, with Citi among the chasers.

Citi Puts Bitcoin Inside Custody+

Citi's Custody+ platform combines asset servicing, settlement, foreign exchange, cash, liquidity, tax processing and market intelligence in one modular system. Bitcoin will be the first supported asset, letting asset managers keep the cryptocurrency with the bank handling their stocks and bonds. The bank has not detailed fees, insurance arrangements, wallet design or client eligibility.

The launch feeds a race among major banks for institutional Bitcoin demand. BNY began offering crypto custody to some US clients in 2022, and Morgan Stanley is building internal capabilities for Bitcoin custody and trading. Banks gained more room to enter the space after the SEC withdrew Staff Accounting Bulletin 121 in 2025, which had made it more expensive for banks to record customers' crypto holdings.

The $134 million in Fidelity flows, combined with BlackRock's reaffirmed allocation and Citi's custody timeline, points to a widening institutional footprint even as spot prices remain far below their peak. Farside Investors data shows US spot Bitcoin products recorded about $226.8 million in net inflows on July 20 and $203.2 million on July 21 before reversing to outflows later that week, a reminder that daily flow prints can shift quickly. The next test for Bitcoin sits at the $65,000 resistance level, with support near $62,000.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.