Weekly Global News Wrap: UniCredit doubles stake in Alpha; US banks eye crypto

And the American banking industry reported $70.6b in profits for Q1 2025.

From Bloomberg:
After seeing two unsolicited deals in a year stalled by unwilling targets and angry governments, UniCredit SpA Chief Executive Officer Andrea Orcel is finally getting a warmer reception.

The Italian lender on Wednesday announced that it has doubled its stake in Greece’s Alpha Services and Holdings SA to about 20% and will seek regulatory permission to take its share ownership to just under 30%.

From Reuters:
Big US banks are holding internal discussions about expanding into cryptocurrencies as they get stronger endorsements from regulators, according to four industry executives.

Initial steps will be tentative, centering on pilot programs, partnerships or limited crypto trading.

Wall Street giants that had been largely blocked from many crypto activities by strict regulations are poised to grow quickly.

From Reuters:
The U.S. banking industry reported $70.6b in profits in the first quarter of 2025, a jump of 5.8% from the previous quarter, according to data from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Profit growth was credited to climbing noninterest income at banks, which was up 7% in the quarter.

However, banks also reported slight growth in provision expenses against potential loan losses.