The large bitcoin institutional investments keep emerging frequently, and the latest one has come from the US-based hedge fund One River Asset Management. After establishing a new company oriented in digital asset investments, the fund has purchased $600 million in BTC and plans to add ETH and expand its holdings to $1 billion in the next few months.
Bitcoin has seen a massive spike in interest from institutional investments in the past few months. The latest one to join the “buy BTC” bandwagon is the Connecticut-based hedge fund specializing in volatility bets – One River Asset Management.
The fund’s CEO, Eric Peters, explained that his company has set up a new venture specializing in cryptocurrency investments called One River Digital Asset Management.
Through its newly-established arm, the hedge fund has purchased $600 million in bitcoin. The company completed all transactions in November before BTC reached $16,000.
Moreover, the organization plans to double-down on its crypto investments by adding Ethereum and expanding its portfolio to about $1 billion as of early 2021. Peters believes that “there is going to be a generational allocation to this asset class,” as the inflows “have only just begun.”
The company’s Long Volatility Fund and Dynamic Convexity Fund enable it to employ volatility and trend-following strategies to earn profits, whether prices are increasing or decreasing. The two funds have risen by up to 40% in 2020 alone.
Peters highlighted the global economic situation following the COVID-19 pandemic, including negative interest rates, fiscal spending by governments, and debt monetization by central banks as the primary reasons for the high market fluctuations.
“COVID-19 provided the ultimate catalyst for that transition. This is the most interesting macro trade I’ve seen in my career.”
Alan Howard, the British billionaire hedge fund manager and co-founder of Brevan Howard Asset Management, will have a major role in the new endeavor as well. Apart from investing in the funds oriented towards crypto assets, the company he oversees acquired 25% of One River Asset Management in October.
Additionally, another firm that he controls, Elwood Asset Management, will provide One River’s digital arm with trading services, market analysis, and technical support.