The CEO of the world’s largest index provider MSCI Inc. has stated that the firm is looking into the cryptocurrency ecosystem and considers the area as one of its options.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Henry Fernandez, Chairman and CEO of MSCI Inc., the world’s largest index provider that is also producing cryptocurrency indices and products, stated that they are aggressively looking into the crypto area.
“We’re still exploring a variety of options and talking to a number of partners, but we’re very bullish on digital assets on the blockchain technology associated with it, obviously including cryptocurrencies. I think they have a role to play in the world. And we’re looking at that. We’re looking at it from the point of you know about direct exposure to the various types of currencies.”
Fernandez previously stated in June that the global securities index publisher is exploring providing indexes based on crypto assets and has been consulting specialists on the subject.
MSCI publishes popular equities and other securities indexes, which by the end of last year had helped asset managers and investors allocate $14.5 trillion in assets globally.
MSCI released 20 thematic indexes on “megatrends” in China this year as part of its recent expansion of offerings to enable investors to direct their cash towards projects that line with the Chinese government’s policy goals.
Apart from discussing crypto in this week’s interview, Fernandez also dismissed concerns about the “investability” of Chinese stocks in the wake of Beijing’s recent regulatory crackdown, citing other instances where markets rebounded.
“Every three, four, five years, regulatory compliance has weighed on China, and certainly the markets have dropped off at the time,” he says. But the markets rapidly recovered and surged to new highs,” he remarked.
“There has been a lot of criticism of China in terms of noncompliance,” and it is now in a correction phase, according to Fernandez, who added, “Countries go through phases like this.”
China also tightened down on cryptocurrency mining and leverage trading, resulting in a major sell-off in crypto asset values in May and June; however, they have since risen sharply and are presently approaching all-time highs.
