Point72, the $34 billion hedge fund owned by billionaire and New York Mets owner Steven Cohen, held $77.5 million in the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) at the end of the first quarter, according to a recent filing.
This investment is part of a broader trend among hedge funds, with several disclosing their purchases of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Notable investors include Paul Singer’s Elliott Capital and Izzy Englander’s Millennium Management, the latter being the largest institutional holder of these new funds with nearly $2 billion in holdings as of March 31.
Among the top 25 hedge funds in the U.S., 13 purchased shares in Bitcoin ETFs during the first quarter, as reported by Bitcoin brokerage firm River. Other prominent buyers include Fortress Investment Group and Schonfeld Strategic Advisors.
While hedge fund acquisitions of spot ETFs may signal a long-term bet on Bitcoin’s price appreciation, these investments could also serve various purposes such as market making, hedging, yield generation, or short-term trading strategies.
Morgan Stanley reported holding $269.9 million in Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) as of March 31, according to a 13F filing. Additionally, major banks such as JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, and UBS disclosed holdings in spot Bitcoin ETFs during the same period.
These purchases do not necessarily reflect the banks’ views on Bitcoin’s future price. Instead, they may have been made on behalf of wealth management clients or as part of market making and ETF authorized participant activities.
Morgan Stanley began offering spot Bitcoin ETF allocations to its clients shortly after their approval in January, though only on an unsolicited basis, meaning clients had to request the investment through their broker. However, it may soon allow its 15,000 brokers to recommend bitcoin ETFs to their clients, as reported by AdvisorHub.
In January, the SEC approved 11 spot bitcoin ETFs from companies including BlackRock, Fidelity, and Invesco. These approvals led to significant initial investment inflows into bitcoin, though these have since slowed.