PNC Bank is now offering direct bitcoin trading to its private banking clients, becoming the first major U.S. bank to embed spot bitcoin access inside its digital banking platform.
The new feature, which went live Monday, caps off a partnership with Coinbase (COIN) that’s been in development since 2021 and was formally announced in July this year.
The feature is available to eligible clients of PNC Private Bank and is powered by Coinbase’s Crypto-as-a-Service (CaaS) platform.
The integration, which is limited to bitcoin trading for now, allows clients to access bitcoin directly within PNC’s digital banking platform, removing the need to open or manage separate crypto exchange accounts.
“This collaboration demonstrates how traditional financial institutions and onchain-native companies can work together to expand access to digital assets in a safe and compliant way,” said Brett Tejpaul, co-CEO of Coinbase Institutional. “PNC has taken a thoughtful, disciplined approach, and we’re pleased to support their efforts with our secure and institutional-grade infrastructure trusted by institutions around the world.”
Coinbase handles custody, trade execution and compliance behind the scenes, giving PNC a way to offer crypto exposure without holding the assets themselves or registering as a crypto broker.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong posted on X: “Exciting to see more banks embrace crypto like this. PNC Private Bank clients can now buy, sell, and hold bitcoin in their existing accounts. PNC is the first major US bank to support this type of offering.”
PNC and Coinbase formally announced their partnership in July 2025, though development reportedly began years earlier. At the time, PNC CEO William Demchak said the partnership would help meet “growing demand for secure and streamlined access to digital assets on PNC’s trusted platform.”
The move gives high-net-worth clients an easier path into bitcoin, while letting PNC test the waters without overcommitting. For Coinbase, it extends the company’s reach into traditional finance and expands its footprint with one of the top 10 U.S. banks.