Fidelity Survey: Institutional Investors Plan To Buy More Bitcoin, Ether, And Other Cryptos

• Digital asset adoption is expected to grow among institutional investors, contrary to views that a massive sale is still on the way.
• 74% of institutional investors indicated an interest in buying Bitcoin and other crypto assets.
• Ethereum has become more popular among big banks and hedge fund managers this year, climbing up the ladder by 5 points. 

Fidelity Digital Assets has released its Fourth Annual Study on institutional investors in the digital asset market, with participants pointing to the growing popularity of Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and other virtual assets in their investment circle. 

According to the survey, institutional investors are still bullish on digital assets despite the current market downturn. 74% of survey participants voted to buy cryptocurrencies in the future, while six in ten (58%) of these investors have already bought digital assets in the Q1 and Q2 of 2022, a 6% growth from 2021.

This year has seen an uptick in global institutional investors in the market, with Asia, Europe, and America all making gains compared to last year. Among participants, 69% of Asian investors owned digital assets compared to Europe and the United States, with 67% and 42%, respectively. Globally about 82% of investors are diving into the market, with venture capitalists leading the pack ahead of hedge funds. 

A striking revelation from the survey was that 8 in 10 participants believed digital assets should be included in every investment portfolio, with BTC and ETH leading the pack. The popularity of ETH also increased among United States investors by 5 points this year but remained unchanged globally.

Though the data covers only the first six months of the year, Fidelity Digital Assets is optimistic that investors are still bullish on virtual currencies. 

“The increased adoption reflected in the data speaks to a strong first half of the year for the digital assets industry. While the markets have faced headwinds in recent months, we believe that digital assets fundamentals remain strong and that the institutionalization of the market over the past several years has positioned it to weather recent events.”

Fidelity’s crypto drive

In recent years, Fidelity Investment has stood out as one of the top institutional investors in the digital market space with its subsidiary, Fidelity Digital Assets. This month, the firm included ETH trading on its platform to enable its institutional clients to access the asset. 

The move to incorporate ETH is not the first attempt by Fidelity at dabbling in cryptocurrencies. The firm began mining Bitcoin in 2014 and formed its crypto subsidiary in 2018 in a bid to offer its clients more investment opportunities. The company now offers clients an opportunity to have digital assets as part of their retirement plans.