JPMorgan Chase & Co., the largest US bank with over $4 trillion in assets, will begin allowing its trading and wealth management clients to use shares of cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs), starting with BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), as collateral for loans. The program will be implemented globally across client tiers. The bank will also factor clients’ crypto holdings, including Bitcoin ETFs, into net worth and liquidity assessments, treating these digital assets similarly to traditional securities such as equities, vehicles, and fine art when determining lending eligibility. IBIT, which launched in January 2024, manages more than $67 billion and is part of a spot Bitcoin ETF market exceeding $125 billion in assets. This policy shift comes after regulatory barriers were eased under the Trump administration and marks a notable change for JPMorgan, whose CEO Jamie Dimon has previously expressed skepticism about Bitcoin. The new framework will standardize crypto-backed lending, replacing the bank’s previous case-by-case approach, and is expected to expand to include additional spot Bitcoin ETFs in the future.