Fidelity Files An Inaugural Bitcoin Fund With SEC

Fidelity Investments walked a long way until getting so close to entering the crypto market, which is now one step closer with the filing of a Form D Notice of Exempt Offering of Securities with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

In the form, Fidelity’s president and director of digital funds, Peter Jubber, announced the company’s interest in creating and deploying its first Bitcoin fund - Wise Origin Bitcoin Index Fund I.

The Boston-based financial management institution is making one step further towards crypto, in times when the investing giant manages $8.3 trillion in customer funds. However, a new entity of Fidelity has been established and is evident in the SEC filing – the Fidelity Digital Funds. Peter Jubber, who is the head of Fidelity Consulting, is running the newly created passively-managed fund, and functions as a president and director of the digital funds.

Arguably, the fund is primarily created for high-profile investors, due to the high minimum amount of participation which the institution requests. According to the Form D filing, the fund entry sum was set to $100,000.

In a recent report which dates from 9^th June and released by Fidelity Digital Assets, the company provides scarce information about the new fund. However, a survey that they conducted reveals an increasing interest in blockchain and crypto investments:

„In a comprehensive survey of almost 800 institutional investors across the U.S. and Europe, 36% of respondents (27% in the U.S. and 45% in Europe) say they are currently invested in digital assets, and 6 out of 10 believe digital assets have a place in their investment portfolio“, the report states.

The news about Fidelity entering the crypto space was anticipated by the majority, as the investment company’s CEO, Abigail Johnson, is among the strongest blockchain and crypto supporters. Fidelity’s engagement with cryptocurrencies was formalized with the creation of Fidelity Digital Assets in 2017 – a company, designed to manage crypto assets for hedge funds, family offices, and trading companies. In 2018, Johnson even stated that she is actively mining Bitcoin.

Apart from Fidelity, only a few other high-profile asset management companies ventured into the crypto world, despite the increasing interest in the sector from both retail and institutional investors. Grayscale Investments, for example, managed to attract $900 million in Q2 of 2020, which is almost double the previous quarterly high. A substantial part of the $900 million comes from institutional investors, which skyrocketed Grayscale past $4 billion in total assets under management (AUM).

Fidelity’s filing comes amid the crypto sector successfully recovering from the massive downward push due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Bitcoin, for example, gained 60% in 2020, despite trailing 40% to its all-time high in late 2017.