British bank HSBC has launched a new discretionary fund to help its accredited clients in Hong Kong and Singapore explore the opportunities of the Metaverse.
HSBC, Europe’s second-largest bank by assets under management, continues its push into the virtual world. The British bank recently announced the creation of a new discretionary fund, called Metaverse Discretionary Strategy, to invest in companies in the Metaverse over the next 10 years, reinforcing the idea that the Metaverse will be the next evolution of the Internet.
The bank's aim through this new fund is to help its accredited clients dive into the potential offered by the virtual universe. This fund is aimed at HSBC's professional investors, high and ultra-high net worth investors in Hong Kong and Singapore, the bank said in a statement. release accessed by Bloomberg.
The technologies that the Metaverse combines, such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, virtual and augmented reality, cryptocurrencies, and the Internet of Things, have prompted HSBC to follow in JPMorgan’s footsteps to establish its presence in the Metaverse.
Nicholas Dowell, portfolio manager at HSBC Asset Management, said the global expansion of the Metaverse will have a huge impact on our daily lives, just like we saw in the early 3s with the birth of the web. For Suresh Balaji, chief marketing officer at HSBC in Asia Pacific, the Metaverse is “the way people will experience WebXNUMX.”
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Investment opportunities in the Metaverse
HSBC has appointed its asset management arm HSBC Asset Management to manage its new discretionary fund and encourage institutional entry into the metaverse.
The bank will focus on capturing the growth and business opportunities offered by the different companies, platforms and technologies existing within this ecosystem. It noted that infrastructure, computing, virtualization, experience and discovery and interface will be its five key segments to take advantage of the new virtual reality.
On the other hand, HSBC Asia Pacific Regional Director Lina Lim said that the metaverse ecosystem, although still in its early stages, is evolving rapidly, so the bank is seeing great opportunities within this digital ecosystem. Lim highlighted that the potential of the virtual world is attracting companies from different industries.
So far this year, JPMorgan, Accenture, PwC, American Express, Victoria's Secret, YouTube and Walmart are among the companies that have expressed interest in the virtual world.
HSBC's investments in The Sandbox and Blockchain
Although the bank has been fairly reserved about cryptocurrencies, last month it made its official entry into The Sandbox Metaverse, acquiring a piece of land within the platform. HSBC said it will use the Metaverse’s digital innovation to create new sports and educational experiences that strengthen relationships between financial service providers and sports communities.
In addition to this, HSBC participated in the $200 million capital round of the blockchain firm ConsenSys, last November.
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