BlackRock is one of the biggest banks in the USA. It is now going after Bitcoin with a huge share of investment. This is not the first time that BlackRock has expressed its interest in the sid digital token. The investment venture attempted to get its hands on Bitcoin last year but later backed off after the SEC began taking harsh measures on Coinbase and Binance.
That story is a lost cause now as BlackRock has come forward to increase its stake in cryptocurrency. Let’s not forget that the banking system of the US collapsed a few months ago. Not that the decision of crypt investment is flawed, but that the fact that their financial system has been at its lowest point makes one wonder if such an investment is really worth it.
Investment in cryptocurrency is backed by two more big banks, namely Bank of America and Fidelity. Numbers from the first quarter of 2023 are surprising.
These banks have been buying amounts of MicroStrategy in Q1 of the current year. MSTR currently holds $3 billion worth of 140k Bitcoin.
Banks getting onboard is not having any memorable effect on BTC. Per the last seen trading value, BTC was much below the mark of $26,000. It was seen exchanging hands at $24,951.40 at the time of articulating this piece. The current value is closer to the lowest it has been at in the last 1 month, or 30 days for a better reference. So, banks getting a share of BTC has had no effect on the trading value as of now.
It is to be noted that there is a possibility that BTC may cross the $50,000 mark. However, there is no tentative timeline for this. The SEC chasing crypto ventures is only going to make it worse for the ecosystem.
However, circling back to the core, banks are buying shares in MSTR to gain exposure to BTC. Bank of America, for example, has more than $33 trillion of AUM and $233 billion MC, and yet it controls 47,800% increased exposure via MSTR. This is true for Q1 2023. The figure for the second quarter is expected to be made public in the next month, which is July.
That accounts for just 2.37% of the stake. The same for BlackRock is 3 times more than that. Its stake is valued at approximately $156 million. Fidelity, in that comparison, sports only a one percent stake in the exposure.
Crypto experts claim that the appetite to have BTC in their names is not limited to just big banks. It further extends to entities in Canada, with the National Bank of Canada boosting its investment in BTC.
A community of crypto enthusiasts is energetic about it but is speculating that banks are merely doing it for the purpose of diversification. Others are estimating that purchase is a part of the dip in the BTC value.
