European banks and financial institutions are done shopping for crypto infrastructure one piece at a time. They want the whole thing, built by one provider, under one roof.
That’s the core finding from Fireblocks’ latest report, “The Financial Grid Europe + UK,” published on May 13. The survey reveals a decisive shift among institutional players on both sides of the English Channel toward full-stack digital asset infrastructure providers, rather than stitching together isolated point solutions for custody, payments, settlement, and tokenization.
The numbers tell a clear story
Continental Europe is further along in committing real dollars. Some 53% of institutions in the region had already locked in digital asset infrastructure budgets heading into 2026, meaningfully above the global average of 42%.
The UK is playing catch-up, but moving fast. Only 36% of UK institutions had committed budgets at the start of the year. However, an additional 59% are earmarking funds for investment during 2026.
