Corporate Giants Prepare to Buy Bitcoin: Bitwise Report

Bitwise, a crypto-native asset manager, has stated that institutions representing trillions of dollars in assets are preparing to invest in spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by the end of June. The company’s chief investment officer, Matt Hougan, revealed in an investment memo sent to investors that Bitwise is engaged in serious discussions for due diligence with major corporations, institutional consultants, and large wirehouses who are looking to increase their exposure to Bitcoin in the coming months. Hougan also confirmed that individual retail investors, family offices, hedge funds, and venture capital firms are interested in investing in spot Bitcoin ETFs. The interest from institutional investors has already contributed to the significant increase in Bitcoin’s price, which surged over 50% since the ETFs were introduced in January.

Hougan expects the influx of institutional funds into the approved spot Bitcoin ETFs to accelerate further in the second half of the year. He highlighted that these ETFs have already gained nearly $9 billion in net inflows since their launch. He believes that the entry of institutional investors, who manage trillions of dollars in assets, will significantly impact the market. Hougan predicts that the first significant flows from these investors will occur in the second quarter of 2024 and gradually increase over the year as they become more comfortable with the new investment products.

This positive outlook on Bitcoin ETFs is not new for Hougan. In late February, he made similar bullish statements, emphasizing that institutional capital would flow into these products, which would subsequently drive up Bitcoin’s price. According to data from BitMEX Research, Bitcoin ETFs have already seen net inflows of $8.89 billion since their launch, with BlackRock’s iShares IBIT fund leading in terms of new inflows. The rapid growth of these ETFs has been described as astonishing for products that have been available for less than two months.

On March 8, BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF surpassed MicroStrategy in terms of the total amount of Bitcoin held, with 197,943 BTC on its balance sheet, valued at over $13.5 billion at current prices. This further highlights the growing interest and confidence of institutional investors in Bitcoin-based investment products.

The increasing appetite for Bitcoin ETFs from institutional investors is expected to have a significant impact on Bitcoin’s price and the overall cryptocurrency market. The entry of such large players with trillions of dollars in assets is likely to drive further investment and growth in the sector.