A prominent European hedge fund has amassed over $418 million in holdings of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Capula Management, a London-based hedge fund overseeing approximately $30 billion in assets, disclosed in a 13F form that it had acquired 4,022,346 shares of Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust (FBTC) and 7,419,108 shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) ETF. At market close on Monday, Capula’s holdings reflect a value of approximately $190.3 million in FBTC and $228.2 million in IBIT, totalling $418.5 million.
The SEC approved 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs in January, providing investors with a secure and regulated means to gain exposure to the volatile cryptocurrency market. These ETFs have been highly successful, attracting significant institutional interest. Industry experts had predicted that such funds would facilitate easier access to Bitcoin for institutions, and this has proven accurate. Collectively, these ETFs now hold tens of billions of dollars in Bitcoin as investment interest has surged in recent months.
In May, American banking giant Wells Fargo disclosed its investments in several Bitcoin ETFs, while the State of Wisconsin Investment Board revealed purchases of shares from both BlackRock and Grayscale Bitcoin ETFs. These moves highlight a growing trend among institutional investors to diversify their portfolios with digital assets.