Vanguard’s new boss says Bitcoin ETF not on the table: Report – Cointelegraph

The new chief executive of United States investment giant Vanguard has said he wont reverse the companys decision to not launch a spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund.

Vanguards new CEO, Salim Ramji the former head of BlackRocks global ETF business told Barrons in an interview published May 15 that Vanguard stands for consistency and crypto-related investment products do not align with its investment philosophy.

I think its important for firms to have consistency in terms of what they stand for and the products and services they offer, said Ramji, who is set to take over as Vanguard's CEO on July 8.

Ramji oversaw the launch of BlackRocks spot Bitcoin ETF in January, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which has amassed $18 billion in assets under management.

He has openly expressed his interest in crypto and his move to Vanguard had industry watchers speculating on what changes he would make at the firm.

Alongside BlackRocks ETF launch, its rivals including Fidelity and nine other investment managers also launched spot Bitcoin funds which have together seen over $12 billion in net inflows.

Vanguard, with its $8.6 trillion in AUM, opted for a different approach and didnt launch a Bitcoin ETF viewing crypto as a speculative investment and an immature asset class.

Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart said in a May 15 X post he doesnt believe Ramji would usher in a Vanguard spot Bitcoin ETF.

Seyffart said, however, that Ramji might reverse the firms position to not allow its clients to buy other spot Bitcoin ETFs on its brokerage platform.

Vanguards outgoing CEO, Tim Buckley, said in March that he didnt believe a Bitcoin ETF belongs in a long-term portfolio of someone saving for their retirement as its a speculative asset.

His comments followed pressure from customers after the launch of the Bitcoin ETFs from rival firms.

Related: JPMorgan reports holding shares of several spot Bitcoin ETFs

In January, a number of Vanguard clients threatened to close their accounts over the firm blocking access to spot Bitcoin ETFs.

Meanwhile, Vanguard was indirectly exposed to Bitcoin through its stake in MicroStrategy where it is the second-largest institutional shareholder.

Rival investment firms are reveling again as flows turn positive in the wake of Bitcoins 7% move to reclaim $66,000 on May 16.

Net inflows for May 15 across all U.S spot Bitcoin ETFs were over $300 million excluding BlackRocks IBIT whose results had yet to be reported, according to preliminary Farside Investors data.

Magazine: Meme coins: Betrayal of cryptos ideals or its true purpose?

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Vanguard's new boss says Bitcoin ETF not on the table: Report - Cointelegraph

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