Millennium Management, a global hedge fund and investment management firm, has revealed a fairly significant exposure to Bitcoin ETFs.
In a 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), investment management firm Millennium Management has said it owns no less than $1.942 billion in shares in Bitcoin exchange-traded funds from BlackRock, Fidelity, Ark Invest, Bitwise and Grayscale Investments.
Company revealed that its largest exposure to Bitcoin ETFs is concentrated in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), with almost $850 million invested in this cash fund. Millennium Management’s second-largest exposure to Bitcoin ETFs is concentrated in Fidelity’s Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), with $806,6 million.
Eric Balchunas, senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, who has been following the development of the Bitcoin ETF market since before its approval, commented that Millennium Management has become the king of headlines in this emerging sector.
Institutions continue to enter the Bitcoin ETF market
New 13F filings with the SEC have revealed a large number of Bitcoin spot ETF participants.
Balchunas commented that the massive entry of financial institutions such as Millennium Management, and major investment banks into the Bitcoin fund market, is something that is not commonly seen until two years after the launch of exchange-traded funds. However, Bitcoin ETFs are receiving a lot of attention from institutional investors and are currently accumulating a large amount of liquidity, said the expert.
In addition to Millennium Management, other institutions that have recently disclosed their holdings in Bitcoin ETFs include Pine Ridge Advisers, Horizon Kinetics, Bracebridge Capital, Boothbay Fund Management and Susquehanna International GroupThe latter, a private global trading and technology company, has invested, to date, about $1.800 billion in ETFs BlackRock, Bitwise, Franklin Templeton, Invesco Galaxy and Grayscale Investments. In addition to these, the firm also owns shares in MicroStrategy.
On the other hand, Balchunas commented that Chad Koehn, founder and CEO of United Capital Management, also has investments in the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) and the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC). Koehn has also invested in ProShares’ Bitcoin futures exchange-traded fund, ProShares Bitcoin Strategy (BITO).
These names join banks such as JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, BNP Paribas and, most recently, Morgan Stanley, which have also invested in Bitcoin spot ETFs.
Bitcoin consolidates itself as an investment asset
The massive institutional entry Bitcoin ETFs reflect the growing recognition and confidence of financial institutions, companies and corporate investors in the cryptocurrency as a legitimate investment asset.
The approval of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the United States marked a turning point, transforming the cryptocurrency investment landscape. Institutions now have a regulated and accessible avenue to gain exposure to Bitcoin, without having to own the asset directly.
