Goldman Sachs Makes Blockbuster Debut, Adds Over $400M In Bitcoin ETF Position In Q2 As Morgan Stanley Pulls Back

Institutional investors, including global investment banks and hedge funds, filed their second-quarter 13F reports, revealing significant positions held in spot Bitcoin BTC/USD ETFs.

What Happened: Global investment bank Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS made its debut in the cryptocurrency ETF market, disclosing holdings of $419 million for the period from March to June.

James Butterfill, a prominent financial analyst and research director at CoinShares, said that Goldman Sachs’ Bitcoin positions were likely being held for their clients as investment advisors.

Morgan Stanley MS, on the other hand, recorded outflows of $87 million, with their assets under management ( AuM) in Bitcoin falling to $203 million.

In the context of cryptocurrencies, 13F filings are significant because they reveal which institutional investors are buying Bitcoin ETFs and how much.

Why It Matters: The latest 13F filings indicated strong institutional confidence in the cryptocurrency market, particularly Bitcoin, which can potentially influence other investors and boost prices of the asset.

Goldman Sachs’ significant investments in Bitcoin ETFs came despite previous statements downplaying the investment potential of cryptocurrencies. Goldman Sachs holds positions in seven out of the 11 Bitcoin ETFs available in the U.S., with the largest holding in the iShares Bitcoin Trust IBIT valued at $238.6 million, while investments of $79.5 million in Fidelity's Bitcoin ETF FBTC.

According to data from SoSo Value, the 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net inflows of $11.11 million as of Aug. 15.

Price Action: At the time of writing, Bitcoin was exchanging hands at $58,095.98, following a 0.30% drop in the last 24 hours, according to data from Benzinga Pro. Shares of Goldman Sachs closed 0.05% higher at $498.97 at Thursday's close, while Morgan Stanley stock popped 1.22% to $100.65.

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