BlackRock Shows Interest In Crypto and Blockchain; Bitcoin Edges Higher

By Ravindra Chagetha

Word of reports claim BlackRock Inc, the world’s largest ETF provider, might be warming up to cryptocurrencies. This has sparked jitters of excitement around the crypto world.

Despite having expressed an avowed reluctance earlier, BlackRock is said to be considering a foray into the rapidly growing digital currency scene. Although BlackRock has not officially given any credence to the rumors that have been doing the rounds, Financial News London has reported that insiders have anonymously revealed the
forming of a working group to explore the prospects. Apparently, members from various divisions of the firm, notably including their multi-asset investment strategist Terry Simpson, are a part of the working group.

The sources have indicated that the foray is merely being considered now in terms of viability and a final decision has not yet been taken.

In October last year, the Global Head of iShares and Index Investment in BlackRock, Mark Weidman had said that he found Bitcoins uncertain in terms of success and that even if his fears were to be unfounded,
he could not imagine any reason why an ETF company would need to get involved in virtual currencies. In the early part of 2018, the Managing Director of BlackRock also dismissed cryptocurrencies as an un-investable class of assets.

The alleged move by BlackRock comes in the wake of the firm facing a brain drain in recent days, with three key managers having left the firm to join or launch cryptocurrency-related businesses.  This news also comes soon after the Chicago Board Options Exchange filed a proposal to alter a present rule that would allow the listing and trading of shares of the Van Eyck Investment and SolidX’s “Bitcoi Trust”. If SolidX’s Bitcoin ETF shares indeed get approved soon, the prices of Bitcoins might potentially skyrocket.

Following the news of the tantalizing possibility of BlackRock’s skepticism finally giving way and of Steven Cohen beginning to invest in Bitcoins, Bitcoin prices have already seen a massive hike, the largest in the past couple of weeks, with traders making upward of 2% in profits.