Goldman Sachs Hedge Fund Clients Show Increased Interest In Bitcoin, Ethereum

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs’ institutional clients are showing an increased interest in crypto in 2024.
• The surging interest is fueled by the recent approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs.

The recent SEC approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs triggered a high interest in crypto for Goldman Sachs’ institutional clients.

Max Minton, who is the head of digital assets for Goldman Sachs Asia Pacific, stated that a lot of the firm’s clients are becoming more interested in crypto in 2024.

A March 2024 report from Bloomberg shows increased interest in the crypto industry for institutional clients.

According to Bloomberg,

“It’s not just the “YOLO” retail traders of the world who are jumping back into cryptocurrency markets. Hedge-fund clients of Goldman Sachs are, too.”

“The recent ETF approval has triggered a resurgence of interest and activities from our clients,” said Minton in an interview.

He continued and explained that most of the fresh demand comes mainly from the existing clients of Goldman Sachs and it’s triggered by the latest approval of the BTC ETFs and the firm’s options and offerings.

Goldman is not currently offering any spot crypto products to clients despite the fact that it launched its first crypto desk back in 2021. This desk offers exposure to crypto derivatives, including BTC and ETH options and futures.

According to Minton, Goldman Sachs’ clients are mainly using derivatives to gain exposure to the volatility of cryptocurrencies, as well as making predictions on where prices are headed in the medium-term.

Among active clients, Bitcoin-related products were the most popular investment vehicles, Minton added.

Minton is also expecting the potential approval of a spot Ether ETF in the U.S. as a trigger to shift his firm’s institutional clients toward ETH.

Goldman Sachs records $2.8 trillion in assets under management at the end of 2023

According to the latest data, Goldman Sachs recorded about $2.8 trillion in assets under management at the end of last year.

David Solomon, Goldman Sachs’ chairman and CEO, called 2023 a “year of execution” in a news release, as noted by PIOnline.

“With everything we achieved in 2023 coupled with our clear and simplified strategy, we have a much stronger platform for 2024,” Solomon wrote.

The growth in assets under management was a great benefit for Goldman Sachs, leading to higher fees for the company’s Asset & Wealth Management division.

In the fourth quarter of last year, AWM reported net revenues of $4.39 billion, which is 23% higher than the same quarter the previous year, and 36% higher than the previous quarter. AWM generated a total of $13.88 billion in net revenues for the entire year of 2023.