Abu Dhabi: Sovereign Wealth Fund Reveals Its Exposure To Bitcoin

Abu Dhabi: Sovereign Wealth Fund On Its Growing Bitcoin Exposure

Abu Dhabi’s Sovereign Wealth Fund And Its Exposure To Bitcoin

The sovereign wealth fund of Abu Dhabi is up with news on Bitcoin.

Abu Dhabi Bitcoin News 

Known by the name Mubadala Investment Company, the Abu Dhabi wealth fund made a revelation. It is about the growing exposure to Bitcoin through Blackrock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) exchange-traded fund (ETF). This has been indicated in the recent 13F form filings.

The investments of Mubadala amount to more than $8.2 million shares of IBIT. This is worth the valuation of approx. $437 million. This is a representation of a small portion of the funds managed - just 14.5% of the $302 billion.

Noteworthy, there was some interesting news during the Abu Dhabi Bitcoin Summit of November. As per reports, Gulf oil nations were increasing their Bitcoin investments. Binance founder Changpeng Zhao also gave some clarifications. Accordingly, the information pertains to one of Abu Dhabi’s numerous sovereign wealth funds.    

There are other entities also in the financial ecosystem of Abu Dhabi. To name a few, they include the Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Company (ADQ), the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), and the Emirates Investment Authority (EIA). The funds collectively manage a whopping $1.6 trillion in assets, as estimated.

What Does The News Signal?

The involvement of Abu Dhabi and its sovereign wealth fund in Bitcoin and cryptocurrency space is crucial. It gives a signal toward the beginning of a “nation-state Bitcoin adoption race,” as per Sina G. Sina G. is the COO at 21st Capital.

Such moves create many perceptions. This one ensures Abu Dhabi’s strategic efforts in establishing itself as one major player in the global crypto sphere. It can be seen how the crypto industry is spreading throughout the world with time. 

The UAE capital is also in news for its involvement in the crypto space. It has already started its integration of Tether USD (USDT) stablecoin into its financial infrastructure. This aims at positioning the capital as an emerging hub for crypto innovation as well as for crypto enthusiasts.

While this is not all, there are several other initiatives set to foster greater institutional adoption in the region. One of its examples is the partnership between Chainlink and Coinbase. 

New Mexico has been in the news for its joining of the Bitcoin Reserve Movement. As per the report, Senator Anthony Thornton introduced the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act (SB 275) to invest 5% of New Mexico’s public funds into Bitcoin. The funds were to come from sources like the grant permanent fund, severance tax permanent fund, and tobacco settlement permanent fund.     

There’s been another report where North Carolina took significant steps towards digital asset investments. On February 10, Speaker of the House Destin Hall introduced the "NC Digital Assets Investments Act" (HB 92). It is a bill focusing on allowing the state treasurer to diversify public funds by investing in some qualified digital assets. According to the bill filed by North Carolina’s house speaker, investments must be limited to Bitcoin exchange-traded products (ETPs).

Final Thoughts

As said, cryptocurrencies are making a place for themselves throughout the globe. The Abu Dhabi-related news is one such example. The current phase may prove to be the most-influential phase when the crypto space grows, spreads and is adopted in different regions of the world.

Like Abu Dhabi, there have been many similar instances in the past. We have seen how different areas of the world have been slowly, but, getting adapted to this new system of finance. Time may not be too far when we would see the crypto industry playing the role of the major financial system for the world.