Crypto asset management firm, Bitwise said that it has surpassed a major milestone in cryptocurrency assets under management (AUM) today, with the total now standing at $500 million.
The San Francisco-based firm said its 10 Crypto Index Fund, a tool that tracks the market value of the top ten cryptocurrencies, has seen the strongest demand, recently crossing over $400 million in AUM.
Historically, the majority of demand on Bitwise’s crypto products has been reserved for its listed index that comprises over 80 percent of the entire crypto asset class. The company further revealed that its Bitcoin and Ethereum funds have seen increased demand as well.
Bitwise saw record inflows into its funds during Q4 of 2020, surpassing the total cumulative inflows of 2018 and 2019 combined as investors bet on both top-ranked coins and the crypto space as a whole.
The digital asset manager was able to achieve this milestone because of the rising demand from professional investors like hedge funds, financial advisors and multi-family offices. This compares with a market that was mostly saturated with retail investors when Bitwise launched in 2017.
“The speed at which professional investors are moving into crypto right now is remarkable. While adoption of crypto as an asset class and conviction around its role in portfolios rapidly expands, we continue to urge all investors to consider the risks associated with investing in cryptocurrencies in general and the Bitwise Funds in particular,” said Hunter Horsley, Co-founder and CEO of Bitwise.
Bitwise Proposed ETFs Foiled Twice
Bitwise offers different cryptocurrency products, all of which had been available exclusively to private investors. However, plans were made to provide the shares to the public after the digital asset manager floated its index on the over-the-counter markets.
This listing has allowed US investors to invest in the fund as a public-traded cryptocurrency index with a traditional brokerage account.
Also Bitwise previously filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission for a regulated ETF that would track its Bitcoin Index. At the time, Bitwise explained that the index aims to capture the total returns available to investors in the world’s largest crypto asset, including any hard forks.
After the SEC’s initial rejection of its ETF proposal in October 2019, Bitwise tried to address the agency’s concerns of market manipulation, which was cited as one of the reasons the regulator rejected its bitcoin exchange-traded fund. However, Bitwise’s suggestions had failed to satisfy the regulator’s demands as the proposed ETF was declined for a second time.
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