World’s Largest Asset Manager Blackrock Sees ‘Very Little’ Demand for Cryptocurrencies

The world’s largest asset manager with $9.5 trillion under management, Blackrock, sees “very little” demand for cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, according to CEO Larry Fink.

Blackrock’s CEO Talks About Crypto Demand

Larry Fink, the CEO of Blackrock, the world’s largest asset manager, talked about bitcoin on CNBC Wednesday as his firm announced a better-than-expected quarterly profit. Blackrock’s assets under management jumped to a record $9.49 trillion in the second quarter from $7.32 trillion a year earlier.

Reiterating his previous stance on cryptocurrency, Fink said: “Again, in my last two weeks of business travel, not one question had been asked about that. That is just not part of the focus on retirement and long-term investors.” The CEO added:

We see very little in terms of investor demand on those types of things. But, quite frankly, they may not come to Blackrock for those types of demand.

He continued: “But, I would say for all the pension funds and the insurance companies, for all the RIAs that we are talking to for their clients on behalf of their retirement, the dialogue is about how should I navigate my portfolio, how should I think about my portfolio over a long horizon.”

While the Blackrock CEO has repeatedly said that his asset management firm does not see demand for cryptocurrencies among its clients, he is not bearish on the future prospects of cryptocurrency.

In December last year, Fink said that bitcoin makes the U.S. dollar less relevant and “can evolve into a global market.” In November, Blackrock’s chief investment officer said that cryptocurrency is here to stay and bitcoin could replace gold. In March, another Blackrock representative said that gold is less effective as a hedge against inflation than bitcoin and in April, Fink said that crypto could become a “great asset class.”

Blackrock started investing in bitcoin in February. An SEC filing in April showed that Blackrock held bitcoin futures contracts worth $6.15 million.

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