Many had predicted that 2019 would be the year that institutional investment floods into crypto. The timing could not be better as markets are still over 80% down from their all-time highs. Multi-billion dollar global asset manager Morgan Creek Digital (MCD) has acknowledged this with its latest investment.
Venture Stage Crypto Asset Investment
According to a Business Wire press release yesterday the US based capital management firm has announced that it will be the lead anchor investor in the flagship fund of Ikigai Asset Management. The fund is focused on opportunistic venture stage crypto asset investments in addition to fundamental liquid hedge fund strategies.
Today we announced that Morgan Creek Digital has become the lead anchor investor in Ikigai Asset Management.
Make no mistake, MCD is looking for savages and we found some in @Travis_Kling & team. 🔥https://t.co/4Fz2oL5cLr
— Pomp 🌪 (@APompliano) March 21, 2019
Crypto asset management company Ikigai was launched in December last year by Travis Kling and partners Timothy Lewis, and Anthony Emtman. Ikigai CIO Kling, who previously managed portfolios at Point72, added;
“DLT and crypto assets are fundamentally changing our world. We are honored to receive this investment from Morgan Creek Digital and look forward to working closely together with Mark, Jason, and Pomp in this exciting arena.”
Pension backed Morgan Creek has been known to be bullish on crypto investments and has also invested in Coinbase and Bakkt among others. Co-founder and Bitcoin bull Anthony Pompliano has previously advocated for pension funds to invest in crypto assets. Stating that the pension crisis in the US is worsening he said that every pension fund should buy Bitcoin to combat the situation.
Putting his money where his mouth is Pomp and partners Mark Yusko and Jason A. Williams have been steering Morgan Creek Digital towards venture based crypto investments, Ikigai being the latest.
“Ikigai has built an impressive platform for understanding the evolution of, and investing in, crypto assets. We believe they are well-positioned to capture the outstanding returns this asset class will bring in the years to come,” he added.
Institutional Interest Rising
Despite the cooling off of interest in futures products, at least according to the CBOE which put the brakes on its Bitcoin contracts last week, longer term funds are growing in popularity. Institutional investors seeking a safe haven and a digital parachute should things turn south are increasingly looking towards experienced firms such as Morgan Creek to manage their portfolios.
Buying and trading cryptos is still largely for a tiny number of tech savvy people which appear to be driving the daily fluctuations in the markets however the big players with the big money will be seeking out security and management services for their digital ambitions. Platforms and crypto based products from the likes of Fidelity Investments, ErisX, Bakkt, and NASDAQ are all expected to be launched in 2019 and it is these that will drive markets back into bullish territory.
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