PIMCO an institutional asset manager plans to extend its exposure to digital currencies such as Bitcoin (BTC), providing the latest evidence that major institutions are starting to embrace the nascent asset class.
Chief investment officer Daniel Ivascyn stated that PIMCO already has exposure to “crypto-linked securities” through multiple hedge fund portfolios in an interview with CNBC on Wednesday.
As part of its “trend-following strategies or quant-oriented strategies,” he said the firm wants to gradually grow its exposure to the asset class. He went on to say:
“This will be a gradual process where we spent a lot of time on the internal diligence side speaking to investors. And we’ll take baby steps in an area that’s rapidly growing.”
PIMCO, which was founded in 1971, is global asset manager specializing in active fixed-income securities. As of December 31, 2020, the firm’s assets under control reached $2.2 trillion.
Bitcoin (BTC) breached all-time highs above $67,000 on Wednesday, and Ether (ETH) surpassed $4,100 for the first time since May. The total cryptocurrency market capitalization achieved a new high of almost $2.63 trillion in the process.
For much of 2021, institutions have been pouring money into crypto investments, reflecting the growing acceptance of digital assets by the general public.
According to a September survey by European investment management Nickel Digital Asset Management, nearly two-thirds of worldwide institutional investors with no cryptocurrency exposure planned to make their first investments within the next 12 months.
According to data from Chainalysis, institutional money was the key driving force behind Asia’s 706 percent increase in crypto transactions over the past year.
