BlackRock CEO Larry Fink says that there is increasing global interest in cryptocurrency and a spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) could lower investing costs.
In a new interview with CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street,” Fink says that much like gold ETFs lowered costs to invest in the precious metal, a Bitcoin ETF would likely do the same for the king crypto.
He says a Bitcoin ETF would also open up the king crypto to a broader pool of investors as worldwide demand for crypto investing is on the rise.
According to Fink, one reason for the growing interest is the belief that crypto can act as a hedge against depreciating fiat currencies like the US dollar.
“We have a responsibility to democratize investing. And we’ve done a great job. And the role of ETFs in the world is transforming investing. And I think we’re only at the beginning of that…
And now, with crypto, the idea of democratizing that role. The cost right now to transact is quite expensive. We’re talking points, not decimal points. And so that’s a big point too. Over the last five years, more and more global investors are asking us about the role of crypto, and as I’ve said, I do believe a lot of crypto is going to be… it’s an international asset. It has a differentiating value versus other asset classes, but more importantly, because it’s so international, it’s going to transcend any one currency and currency valuation.
If you just look at the value of our dollar, how it depreciated the last two months, and how much it depreciated over the last five years, an international crypto product can really transcend that. And that’s why we believe there are great opportunities and that’s why we’re seeing more and more interest. And that interest is broad-based, worldwide.”
BlackRock applied for a spot Bitcoin ETF on June 15 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which has yet to approve one.
Says Fink,
“We are working with our regulators, because we want, as in any new market, if BlackRock’s name is going to be on it, we’re going to make sure that it’s safe and sound and protected.”
Bitcoin is trading for $31,236 at time of writing, up 1.2% in the past 24 hours.
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