Traditional Firms Embrace Crypto Amid Bear Market
Financial institutions managing over $1 trillion in assets have been expanding access to digital assets despite a bear market, according to Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley. This shift marks a significant change from the past, where 'long bitcoin, short the bankers' was a common phrase used to describe the relationship between traditional finance and cryptocurrency.
Horsley noted that two financial institutions managing over $1 trillion in assets decided to offer crypto products this summer, despite the bear market. This is a departure from 2022, when large firms were not opening access during a downturn.
Experts agree that the relationship between banks and crypto has changed. Sygnum Chief Investment Officer Fabian Dori attributed the shift to client demand and clearer rules, calling it structural rather than cyclical.