Ivy-league US college Brown discloses $4.9 million exposure to Bitcoin via BlackRock’s IBIT ETF

Brown College has made its first reported foray into Bitcoin (BTC), investing $4.9 million in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Belief (IBIT), in keeping with a latest 13F filing submitted to the US Securities and Change Fee.

The Ivy League establishment acquired 105,000 shares of the ETF throughout the first quarter, making the place roughly 2.3% of its reported $216 million fairness holdings.

The acquisition provides Brown to a rising roster of conventional establishments turning to regulated autos for digital asset publicity.

Adoption by way of Bitcoin ETFs

Designed to trace the worth of Bitcoin immediately, spot Bitcoin ETFs have seen widespread adoption throughout hedge funds, pensions, and now college endowments.

BlackRock’s IBIT has emerged as a well-liked entry level for establishments because the SEC permitted it in January 2024. In lower than a yr, the fund turned one of many best-performing ETFs out there’s historical past.

As of March 31, IBIT held roughly 576,038 Bitcoin, equating to internet property of $47.78 billion.

Brown’s determination displays a broader pattern amongst long-term asset managers in search of Bitcoin publicity via acquainted monetary constructions. Spot ETFs like IBIT enable establishments to entry Bitcoin with out the operational burden of custody or direct token administration.

Universities embracing Bitcoin

Whereas college endowments have largely remained cautious, latest months have seen a shift. The College of Austin introduced in February that it might allocate $5 million of its endowment to Bitcoin.

The fund could be held in partnership with Unchained and was arrange with a five-year minimal holding interval.

Different faculties, together with Stanford and Emory, have additionally reported publicity to Bitcoin via regulated funding merchandise. These strikes recommend a gradual normalization of digital property inside institutional portfolios as soon as thought-about too conservative for crypto holdings.

On the time of the disclosure, Bitcoin was buying and selling slightly below $97,000, primarily based on CryptoSlate knowledge.

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