Amberdata , surveying 60 institutions from the US and Europe, shares surprising results. As many as 48% of them said they are currently managing cryptocurrencies.
Significant interest from institutions
The above information is not only a sign that institutions are not indifferent to the potential of the cryptocurrency market, but also evidence of their optimism in this regard.
Analysts at Amberdata, a firm working with Coalition Greenwich, analyzed asset managers’ attitudes toward digital assets in their latest report, “Digital Assets: The Impact on Data Infrastructure.”
Among those surveyed, representing hedge funds, venture capital firms and family offices, nearly half (48%) are actively involved in managing digital assets, Amberdata CEO Shawna Douglass points out.
Nevertheless, the values of these assets under management (AUM) vary significantly. The smaller ones predominate. Only 22% of respondents report amounts between $1 million and $10 million. 19% have between $11 and $50 million worth of cryptocurrencies under management, while only one company handles digital assets worth more than $1 billion.
Are regulatory ambiguities no longer an obstacle?
Survey respondents’ answers regarding the total value of assets under management also varied significantly. Some 30% declared AUM in excess of $5 billion across all asset classes, while another 30% reported amounts between $1 billion and $5 billion. The remainder declared amounts below $1 billion.
“It is extremely interesting to observe the optimism of respondents regarding the positive attitude of the United States towards digital assets, despite the unclear regulatory environment,” – Douglass notes.
According to data from Amberdata and Coalition Greenwich, as many as 85% of respondents believe that despite short-term challenges, the SEC and CFTC will create a favorable outlook in the future.
Despite this optimism, there are also challenges. For 52% of institutions that are not yet involved in cryptocurrencies, the regulatory environment remains one of the main inhibitors. Other obstacles include the lack of uniform technology for customer recognition (KYC) and anti-money laundering (AML), as well as unclear tax rules, a complicated process for storing digital assets, security issues and blockchain performance.
Positive market sentiment for crypto
The report clearly shows that institutions are taking the provision of specialized crypto services very seriously. One in four already offers services related to digital assets, and this number is expected to grow by 13% over the next year.
Douglass sums up his finding, which he considers significant: “Even with the demise of FTX, most asset managers expect centralized exchanges to grow over the next five years.”
Despite the fantastic results of the survey, it should be taken into account that the research sample here is small, which does not necessarily reflect the total cross-section of the market.
