Guggenheim opens door to bitcoin exposure for $5 billion macro fund via Grayscale's GBTC

Guggenheim Partners, the $200 billion-plus asset-manager, could be the latest Wall Street firm to allocate capital to the cryptocurrency market, as per a filing. 

The firm, which invests across asset classes on behalf of companies, pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds, wrote in a filing on November 27 that it might "seek investment exposure to bitcoin indirectly" via Grayscale's Bitcoin Trust product (GBTC) through its Macro Opportunities Fund. 

"The Macro Opportunities Fund may seek investment exposure to bitcoin indirectly through investing up to 10% of its net asset value in Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ('GBTC'), a privately offered investment vehicle that invests in bitcoin," the filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission read.

The Macro Opportunities Fund is one of the firm's best-known with more than $5 billion in assets under management. As per the firm's website, it seeks to offer exposure "to the investment team's highest-conviction ideas in the current market environment through an unconstrained approach," and "the strategy opportunistically allocates to other asset classes to potentially enhance return and/or mitigate risk."

"To the extent the Fund invests in GBTC, it will do so through a wholly-owned subsidiary, which is organized as a limited company under the laws of the Cayman Islands (the "Subsidiary"). Except for its investment in GBTC, the Fund will not invest, directly or indirectly, in cryptocurrencies," the firm wrote in the filing. 

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Grayscale, one of the largest crypto asset-managers, recently surpassed $10 billion in assets as bitcoin soared to highs rivaling levels in 2017. The firm's funds have gained popularity given their similarity to exchange-traded funds and their availability through retail brokers like Charles Schwab. Still, they have traded at large premiums, which have resulted in retail investors purchasing shares at a much higher premium than the price of the underlying crypto asset. 

Guggenheim would be the latest to signal its interest in bitcoin as a macro play. Earlier this year, investment legend Paul Tudor Jones penned a note outlining how bitcoin could serve as an inflationary hedge against aggressive central bank policy. In October, the billionaire doubled down on his position, saying that he liked bitcoin "more now than I did." Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller said earlier this month that he had placed a bet on bitcoin.


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Frank Chaparro is Host of The Scoop podcast and Director of Special Projects. He also writes a biweekly newsletter. Chaparro started his career at Business Insider, where he specialized in the intersection of digital assets and Wall Street, market structure, and financial technology. Soon after joining Business Insider out of Fordham University, Chaparro was interviewing top finance and tech executives, including billionaire Mark Cuban, “Flash Boys” star Brad Katsuyama, Cboe Global Markets CEO Ed Tilly, and New York Stock Exchange President Tom Farley. In 2018, he become a sought after reporter in the crypto world, interviewing luminaries such as Tyler Winklevoss, the cofounder of Gemini, Jeremy Allaire, the CEO of Circle, and Fundstrat head Tom Lee. For inquiries or tips, email [email protected].