Brazil’s largest bank recommends allocating up to 3% of a portfolio to bitcoin

Renato Eide, a partner at Itaú Asset Management, said such a “calibrated” allocation offers a dual advantage: diversification and protection from currency devaluation.

He stressed that the guidance is aimed at long-term investors and is not about timing short-term market moves. Cryptocurrencies, he said, should not form the core of a portfolio but can serve as a complementary asset class that behaves independently of local economic cycles.

The note also highlights bitcoin’s potential as a partial hedge against a weakening national currency — a major concern in Brazil, where fiat volatility remains high. In December 2024, the real hit a historic low against the U.S. dollar, increasing interest in assets denominated in global currencies. The real now trades around 5.42 per dollar.

Itaú uses its own ETF, BITI11, as the primary vehicle for BTC exposure. The fund, listed on the B3 exchange since 2022 and created in partnership with Galaxy Digital, manages roughly $115 million. Eide described adding BITI11 to a portfolio as a “double opportunity” — offering both international diversification and capital protection.

The recommendation fits into the bank’s broader crypto strategy. In late 2023, Itaú launched bitcoin and ethereum trading within its íon app, with the bank serving as custodian. New rules from Brazil’s central bank now require digital asset firms to register with the regulator to operate legally, creating a more transparent and supervised environment for crypto services.

Eide noted that trying to time the perfect bitcoin entry is rarely effective, and that performance should be measured over years, not months. Even a small BTC allocation, he said, can significantly improve an investor’s resilience to local currency shocks.

Brazil is emerging as one of the fastest-moving regions for institutional crypto adoption. In this context, Itaú’s recommendation signals that bitcoin has secured a place in the strategic models of even the country’s most conservative financial institutions.