Latest news with #SWIB
Gulf Insider
4 days ago
- Business
- Gulf Insider
Norway's Sovereign Wealth Fund Ups Its Indirect Exposure To Bitcoin
Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the largest state-directed wealth fund in the world, increased its indirect Bitcoin exposure by 192% over the last year, according to crypto research company K33 Research. The fund has indirect exposure to 7,161 BTC through its investment portfolio, which includes treasury companies Strategy and Metaplanet and crypto exchange Coinbase. Norway's sovereign wealth fund continues to increase its Bitcoin and crypto exposure. Source: Vetle Lunde The fund currently holds over 11.9 billion Norwegian krone ($1.2 billion) of Strategy's stock, a 133% increase from 2024. Similarly, the fund has increased its Coinbase holdings by over 96% since 2024. Norway's increase in BTC holdings reflects a broader trend of sovereign wealth funds gaining indirect exposure through BTC investment vehicles and corporate proxies, as the world's first cryptocurrency becomes integrated into the traditional financial system. The Norwegian sovereign wealth fund also increased exposure to BTC holding company Strategy in 2025. Source: Norges Bank Investment Management Sovereign wealth and state pension funds legally mandate managers to invest only in pre-defined asset classes such as fixed-income securities, corporate bonds, equities and others. Because of these restrictions, fund managers who want to invest in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies must gain indirect exposure through an investment vehicle like an exchange-traded fund (ETF), a corporate bond or a company proxy like Strategy. The State of Wisconsin State Investment Board (SWIB), the organization that manages the US state's pension system, was one of the first state-level pension funds in the country to disclose indirect Bitcoin exposure through a $164 million investment into BTC ETFs. In February, SWIB disclosed that its BTC holdings nearly doubled, surging to over $321 million, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing. The pension manager sold off BTC holdings in May but retained a $50 million position in BTC proxy Strategy. Kazakhstan's sovereign wealth fund announced in July that it plans to convert a portion of its assets to crypto. Timur Suleimenov, head of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, said the prospective move is intended to generate more investment income for the wealth fund, and the government is also exploring converting other assets like gold and foreign currency reserves to crypto.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wisconsin Sells Entire $350M Spot Bitcoin ETF Stake
The State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB), one of the first U.S. state pension funds to invest in a spot bitcoin BTC exchange-traded fund, exited its position entirely in the first quarter as the price of the largest cryptocurrency fell about 12%. At end of 2024, the board held more than 6 million shares in BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), a position valued at around $350 million based on recent prices. That stake is now gone, according to its latest 13F filing. The offload occurred less than a year after Wisconsin made headlines as an early institutional adopter of the newly approved crypto investment vehicles and stands in contrast to the board's activity just months earlier. In late 2024, SWIB more than doubled its exposure to bitcoin by raising its IBIT holdings from about 2.9 million to over 6 million shares. The board added indirect exposure to bitcoin via Strategy (MSTR) shares. In the first quarter it added 26,571 MSTR shares, worth around $10.5 million. Established in 1951, SWIB manages over $160 billion in assets, serving Wisconsin state employees through the Wisconsin Retirement System and other funds. In contrast, Mubadala Investments, Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund, increased its stake in BlackRock's IBIT in the first quarter of the year. The fund, its latest 13F shows, added in a little over 490,000 shares valued at around $29 million. Bitcoin has risen 27% to trade near $103,750 since the end of the quarter. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wisconsin Pension Fund Sold IBIT Before Trade Clash
The State of Wisconsin Investment Board sold off its entire $321.5 million stake in BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), according to a Thursday Securities and Exchange Commission filing, with the sale coming before international trade tensions escalated. The filing shows Wisconsin's reversal came months after initially embracing Bitcoin exposure. According to the 13F filing, SWIB liquidated over 6.1 million IBIT shares from its portfolio during 2025's first quarter, concluding the divestment by the end of March. The pension fund's withdrawal from cryptocurrency investment occurred just days before sweeping trade policy changes created market volatility, highlighting how large institutional investors may reconsider digital asset holdings when economic conditions appear uncertain. As one of the first state pension funds to invest in Bitcoin ETFs when they launched, SWIB's withdrawal raises questions about the long-term commitment of institutional investors to digital assets, especially when facing economic headwinds. After Wisconsin departed from the Bitcoin market, cryptocurrency valuations experienced pressure as international trade relations deteriorated. In early April, the new administration implemented broad tariffs affecting global relationships with close U.S. allies. The pension fund's exit proved well-timed as Bitcoin prices later declined amid growing trade disagreements. By March, U.S. tariffs on Chinese products reached 145%, while China countered with 125% fees on American imports. By mid-May, both nations began easing trade restrictions, with U.S. rates on Chinese goods dropping to 30% while Chinese duties on American products decreased to 10%. During this period of economic friction, Bitcoin prices dropped below $75,000, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Following the quarter's end, Bitcoin prices had mostly recovered, reaching a high of $105,747 over the past month as market stability returned and trade tensions diminished. Despite leaving direct Bitcoin investment, the pension fund maintained some cryptocurrency exposure. The filing reveals SWIB holds 127,528 shares of Strategy (MSTR), formerly known as MicroStrategy, valued at around $36.8 million, representing a smaller crypto allocation than their previous ETF | © Copyright 2025 All rights reserved
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wisconsin More Than Doubled BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Holdings to 6M Shares
Wisconsin's investment board saw fit to significantly add to its bitcoin (BTC) bet in the last three months of the year. The State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB) disclosed ownership of just over 6 million shares of BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) as of the Dec. 31, per a 13F filing on Friday, up from roughly 2.9 million shares three months prior. The position is valued at $340 million at IBIT's current price of $56.10 and would be worth about $588 million at bitcoin's current price near $98,000. The fund in 2024 became the first of its kind to report a bitcoin ETF purchase, initially buying 94,562 shares of IBIT and some shares of Grayscale's Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), which it later sold. The State of Michigan Retirement System later also reported owning shares of bitcoin ETFs, the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) and two of Grayscale's bitcoin products. SWIB, established in 1951, oversees more than $156 billion in assets including funds from the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) and the State Investment Fund (SIF). The board manages investments on behalf of state employees and other trust funds. Today marks the deadline for institutional investors managing at least $100 million in assets to report quarterly holdings to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The market is closely monitoring these filings to gauge whether large traditional finance firms have been adding bitcoin ETFs to their portfolios since their launch last year. UPDATE (Feb. 14, 18:49 UTC): Updates current valuation of State of Wisconsin's stake in IBIT. Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards. For more information, see CoinDesk's full AI Policy.
