Many bank funds have acquired GBTC shares in recent months. Morgan Stanley has also anticipated an explosion of the metaverse industry, and it is not the only bank watching that trend closely.
According to public documents from The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Morgan Stanley has been looking for more exposure to cryptocurrency over the past quarter through Grayscale. As such, several of the bank’s funds have acquired over one million shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) during this period. The MacroScope Twitter account, which follows the bank’s investments in GBTC, reported the news.
Notably, GBTC is one of the most relevant Bitcoin investment funds worldwide. This investment fund got launched in 2013 by asset manager Grayscale, and it allows investors to indirectly access the flagship cryptocurrency without the challenges of physically buying, storing, and safeguarding it.
Morgan Stanley Continues to Invest in Bitcoin Indirectly
At the end of September 30, Morgan Stanley’s Growth Portfolio Fund reportedly added 1.5 million GBTC shares. Similarly, the Insight Fund included nearly 600,000 shares during that period.
Other bank funds such as the Global Opportunity Portfolio have also increased their investment in Bitcoin. MacroScope collected in a tweet thread how much these Morgan funds have increased their shares in GBTC since June.
In August this year, at least four funds from the banking giant, including some of those previously mentioned, we’re making indirect investments in Bitcoin through Grayscale. It appears that in recent months, the bank has continued to pursue this strategy and is currently holding more than $ 300 million worth of GBTC shares.
The news comes when large banks are beginning to venture into the digital currency space. Earlier this year, Morgan Stanley revealed that it would offer Bitcoin exposure to its high net worth clients in response to growing demand. Since then, the investment giant has made several moves in favor of crypto adoption.
Its top executives have also distanced themselves from the opinion of other bankers to defend the new asset class. Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman said in October that he does not consider “cryptocurrencies a trend.”
Banks Keep Watching the Metaverse
More recently, analysts at that bank have been closely watching the trend around the metaverse. In a November report, Morgan Stanley highlighted that the metaverse market could reach a valuation of $ 8 trillion in the next few years.
The firm also shared a list of possible investments that could provide exposure to this space. In its report, the bank mentioned Facebook as the most obvious choice; but other companies such as Roblox appeared on the list too.
Morgan Stanley isn’t the only bank looking closely at the metaverse. In conversations with CNBC this week, DBS Bank Senior Investment Strategist Daryl Ho spoke about the trend and what alternatives investors currently have to reap the benefits of the metaverse.
Ho revealed that Facebook’s renaming sparked great interest in DBS. He believes a metaverse is a group of trends seen in recent decades, namely the digitization of almost every aspect of life, from socializing.
The strategist also suggested keeping an eye out for video game companies like those that have the potential to shape the metaverse. This action could expose investors to the potential gains from this space.
By: Jenson Nuñez
