Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and BlackRock have been among the many financial institutions active in the crypto space. Public documents from the U.S. SEC indicate that Morgan Stanley purchased more than one million shares of Grayscale BTC.
Despite the crackdown on cryptocurrencies in China, Morgan Stanley recently doubled its stake in Grayscale BTC (GBTC). With that, the multinational investment bank once again shows its support for cryptocurrencies.
Morgan Stanley Europe Opportunity Fund informed the SEC that it owns 58,116 shares of Grayscale BTC. In that way, they double their exposure to the pioneering cryptocurrency.
Interestingly, Morgan Stanley has increased its Grayscale BTC shares since April.
Similarly, Ark Invest, whose CEO is Cathie Wood, has also invested in Grayscale BTC. In July, they stated that they had purchased more than 450,000 GBTC shares.
In recent months, Morgan Stanley has been among the many financial institutions most active in the crypto space. Other companies that have bet on Bitcoin include JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and BlackRock.
Morgan Stanley Doubles Its Exposure to Bitcoin
According to a recent report from the U.S. SEC, Morgan Stanley Europe Opportunity Fund owned 58,116 GBTC shares on July 31st. That represented about 105% more than what it had the month before.
On September 27th, GBTC was trading at USD 34.28. That brings the exposure of the investment bank to about USD 2 million BTC.
Market analyst MacroScope shared the news, basing on the latest filing of the company with the SEC.
The Multinational Investment Bank Bets on Bitcoin
In August, Morgan Stanley had increased its exposure to Bitcoin with a significant investment in Grayscale BTC. Curiously, they showed their first public support for cryptocurrencies earlier this year.
Public documents from the US SEC of August 25th, 2021, indicate that Morgan Stanley increased its exposure to BTC. To do that, they bought more than one million shares of Grayscale BTC.
It is not the first time that Morgan Stanley has invested in Grayscale BTC, as they acquired 28,289 GBTC shares in June. At that time, they bought them at a value of about USD 1.3 million.
Bitcoin Awakens the Interest of Large Global Financial Institutions
Morgan Stanley has also put money in other cryptocurrency-based companies. In June, they invested USD 48 million in a Grayscale platform based on Blockchain Securitize.
The high performance of cryptocurrency mutual funds has led Wells Fargo, JP Morgan, and Goldman Sachs to become interested in them.
The information offered by Morgan Stanley and the U.S. SEC could spark a new wave of positive interest. Something similar drove the price of Bitcoin to unprecedented levels in early 2021.
The importance of the pioneering cryptocurrency in the world economy has led many companies to venture into that sector. For that reason, a growing number of financial institutions have included services that involve those assets.
Companies in other areas, like MicroStrategy and Tesla, have invested in Bitcoin as part of their treasuries. The CEOs of those companies consider that the first cryptocurrency is a better store of value than gold.
By Alexander Salazar
