Corporations Haven’t Even Begun Buying Bitcoin ETFs: Bitwise

cryptonews.com:

Demand for Bitcoin ETFs is only beginning to ramp up, with some of the market’s largest players yet to begin buying, according to crypto asset manager Bitwise.

Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan made a post on X on Tuesday outlining investor groups that generally have already bought, versus those who “will be buying bitcoin ETFs soon.”

In the latter category were some of the world’s largest potential sources of demand, including “wirehouse advisors,” “corporations,” and “institutional consultants.”

Investors who are buying bitcoin ETFs today:

* Retail investors
* Registered Investment Advisors
* Family offices
* Hedge funds
* Venture capital funds
* Asset managers

Investors who I think will be buying bitcoin ETFs soon:

* Wirehouse advisors
* Corporations
* Institutional…

— Matt Hougan (@Matt_Hougan) March 5, 2024

A wirehouse is a full-service broker-dealer providing a range of financial services including investment banking, trading, research, and wealth management. Examples of large U.S. wirehouses include Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, and UBS.

Though initially hesitant, Merrill Lynch and Wells Fargo began allowing their clients to invest in Bitcoin ETF offered by BlackRock, Fidelity, and others late last month. The wealth management group wanted to see whether the ETFs could trade efficiently before platforming them for clients, and based on their flows and volume, they’ve proven extremely successful.

In an interview with CNBC last week, Hougan explained that a relatively larger share of initial ETF demand has come from retail buyers. New to that mix are registered investment advisors (RIAs), family offices, hedge funds, venture capital funds, and asset managers.

Many major wirehouses, however, are yet to “plug in” to the ETFs. “I think there’s