Goldman Sachs Discloses Investments in Bitcoin ETFs, Despite Previous Critical Stance

Goldman Sachs, a global investment bank, has recently disclosed investments in Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), despite its previously critical stance

Goldman Sachs, a global investment banking giant, has disclosed its latest investments in Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), revealing a total of around $718 million across eight ETFs.

A November 14th filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) shows the bank's holdings in the Bitcoin ETF space have significantly increased since its entry earlier this year.

The largest allocation among the ETFs is to BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (NYSE Arca:IBIT) with an investment of approximately $461 million.

The filing also indicates that Goldman Sachs boosted its Bitcoin ETF holdings by $300 million since the previous quarter, marking a 71% increase.

Back in August, the bank disclosed its first ETF purchase in Q2, which was valued at $418 million at the time of the filing.

In addition to its stake in BlackRock's IBIT, the bank's diversified portfolio also includes $96 million in Fidelity's Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund, $72 million in the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF (OTCMKTS:GBTC), and around $60 million in the Invesco Galaxy Bitcoin ETF (Galaxy ETF Trust II).

Among the smaller holdings are $22.5 million in the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF, $3 million in the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF, $4 million in the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF (Grayscale Mini Bitcoin ETF Trust) and close to $800,000 in the WisdomTree Bitcoin Fund.

These investments come despite Goldman Sachs maintaining a critical stance on the digital asset sector in the past.

As late as 2020, the bank had argued that Bitcoin “is not an asset class” and notably discouraged its clients from investing in it.

Even with the introduction of a limited Bitcoin derivatives trading desk in 2021, skepticism towards the crypto space persisted among its leadership.

In an April interview with The Wall Street Journal, Sharmin Mossavar-Rahmani, chief investment officer for Private Wealth Management, reiterated this cautious outlook.

She highlighted that despite a bull market, there was little interest from clients in Bitcoin or cryptocurrencies, which she likened to past speculative bubbles, adding that Goldman still does not fully endorse Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies as a viable investment asset class.

However, the bank's increasing allocation to Bitcoin ETFs suggests a reevaluation of its strategy in response to the market developments and institutional interest in the crypto space.