Key Points
- SEC filings note that the US Wisconsin Investment Board is currently holding $99 million in BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF, IBIT.
- The agency, established in 1951, manages and invests Wisconsin’s public pension and other trust funds.
SEC filings show that the State of Wisconsin Investment Board currently holds $99 million in BlackRock‘s Bitcoin ETF, IBIT.
This is an agency that was founded in 1951 to manage and invest Wisconsin’s public pension and other trust funds.
The Wisconsin Investment Council also holds $64 million in Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF, GBTC.
Not too long ago, BlackRock’s head of digital assets, Robert Mitchnick, said that he expects a new wave of interest from a different type of investors – financial institutions such as sovereign wealth funds, pension funds and endowments.
Bloomberg analyst, Eric Balchunas addressed the holdings via his X account, highlighting that a state pension bought IBIT in Q1 2024. He noted that normally, we don’t see big institutions investing in 13Fs for a year or so when the ETFs get more liquidity, but these “are no ordinary launches,” he says.
Balchunas believes that this is a good sign and following the move, people should expect more institutions to follow, as they “tend to move in herds.”
Wow, a state pension bought $IBIT in first quarter. Normally you don't get these big fish institutions in the 13Fs for a year or so (when the ETF gets more liquidity) but as we've seen these are no ordinary launches. Good sign, expect more, as institutions tend to move in herds https://t.co/leKVe2CK1S
— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) May 14, 2024
Ethereum ETFs have “slim to none” approval odds
Balchunas also shared a post today on his X account, noting that the SEC asked commenters regarding the Ethereum ETFs whether the filers have properly filed their ETF listing proposals as commodities.
According to him, this shows that the SEC is considering ETH to be a security in their denial. He concluded by saying that an approval for ETH ETFs now has slim to none odds of becoming a reality.
TLDR: the SEC asked commenters re the Eth spot ETFs whether these filers have properly filed their ETF listing proposals as commodities. This shows the SEC is perhaps considering to Eth is a security in their denial. Our odds of approval remain the same: slim to none. Nice job of… https://t.co/g9HGPzGyOp
— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) May 14, 2024
On April 25, we noted that reports from the Reuters press agency revealed that the US SEC could deny the spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds this month, citing sources familiar with the matter.
US issuers and other firms are expecting to see the Securities and Exchange Commission denying their applications after some discouraging meetings with the regulatory agency in April.
VanEck, ARK Investment, and seven other issuers have previously filed with the SEC to list ETFs that would track the spot price of Ethereum.
The SEC still has to decide on VanEck’s and ARK’s filings, which are the first in line, according to the same reports, by May 23 and May 24, respectively.
The meetings that took place between issuers and the regulator have reportedly been one-sided, and the agency’s staff have not discussed substantive details about the proposed products, according to sources cited by Reuters back in April.
