Key Takeaways
- Over 1,000 hedge funds, pensions and other financial institutions are invested in Bitcoin directly or through exchange-traded products.
- Several U.S. state pension funds are adopting BTC to their holdings. Politicians are also proposing to adopt BTC as a strategic reserve asset at the state and national levels.
- U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs now command over $113 billion in combined net assets, representing 5.76% of BTC’s market cap.
Pension funds are some of the oldest and wealthiest financial institutions in the world, and this future-facing industry is increasingly adding Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrency assets and products to their portfolios.
Bitcoin Pension’s
As per The Financial Times, U.S. and global pension funds are buying up BTC and other crypto products and are increasingly encouraged to do so, thanks to BTC’s recent impressive rally above $100,000.
Alex Pollak, head of U.K. and Israel for Swiss-based crypto fund, 21Shares, mentioned how the firm recently advised on its first BTC deal with an unnamed £50 million ($60 million) pension fund. In it, the pension allocated approximately £1.5 million ($1.8 million) directly into BTC.
After a difficult couple of years following the FTX debacle, which gravely impacted the finances of several pension funds, notably the Canadian Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, which wrote off $95 million in losses, it would appear that institutional confidence is returning.
Going Long on Crypto
There is perhaps no better level of institutional adoption than that of pension funds, which are historically geared towards securing the best long-term returns for their clients.
In March 2024, when the wealthiest pension fund in the world, Japan’s $1.5 trillion Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) simply mentioned it was looking into assets such as Bitcoin, it drew the world’s attention.
As The Financial Times reports, pension funds in the U.S. are diving head-first into crypto. Notably, Wisconsin’s Investment Board, its state pension fund, has over $160 million worth of shares across two spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and almost $13 million in Grayscale’s Ethereum ETF.
Other states, such as Michigan, hold major stakes in spot crypto ETFs.
As evidenced by the efforts of U.S. states, such as Texas and Oklahoma, to establish Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset, and international efforts to secure satoshis, BTC appears to be one of the most desired asset on Earth at the moment.
Eddie is a gaming and crypto writer at CCN. Covering the often weird and wonderful world of Web3 with an adoring, but skeptical eye.
Prior to CCN, Eddie has spent the past seven years working his way through the crypto, finance, and technology industry. He began with PR and journalism with Bitcoin PR Buzz and BitcoinNews.com, eventually working his way to become a copywriter with a dozen firms, including the likes of Polkadot before returning to journalism in 2023.
Having studied Radio production and journalism at University in the UK, Eddie spent a few years making podcasts and presenting on a local London radio station as he built up his writing chops.
A lifelong skateboarder, Eddie can often be found at the skatepark or touring the streets looking for something new to try. That, or kicking back playing JRPGs on his original PSP.
