Busy Investors, Not Price or Regulation, Halt Crypto Adoption

According to Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley, the biggest barrier to cryptocurrency adoption is no longer regulation or access, but rather investors being too busy. Horsley stated that investors are too preoccupied with other things, calling them the 'final boss' of reasons why people aren't adopting crypto. He added that the industry has spent ten years clearing other hurdles, such as a lack of exchanges and qualified custodians, as well as government shutdown fears.

Horsley noted that the most common pushback Bitwise receives now is from advisors saying their clients aren't asking about crypto. Some advisors at large firms that approved Bitwise products over a year ago still don't know they have access to Bitcoin (BTC), which Horsley found 'almost hard to fathom.'

The ideal price for Bitcoin is one that provides 'positive price performance, not too slow, not too fast, and not too high too quickly,' Horsley said. He believes the crypto sector is close to achieving this balance, with Bitcoin's price currently trading near $85,200.

Advisors are increasingly swapping self-custody holdings into Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) shares, with Horsley noting that 'peace of mind, simplicity is the order of the day.' He expects those swaps to start showing up sometime next year, following the Securities and Exchange Commission's proposed crypto custody framework for registered investment advisors.

The Bitwise NEAR ETF has attracted over $50 million in net inflows since its launch in late September, with Horsley seeing index products as an emerging bridge between AI and crypto. He expects wealth managers to drive the growth of index products, saying 'I think the story is just getting started on the index front.'