Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest Sells 2% of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust Holdings as BTC Tops $34K

Cathie Wood’s tech-focused investment manager, ARK Invest, has sold around $2.5 million in the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) shares.

The fund sold 100,739 shares, equivalent to around 2% of ARK’s Next Generation ETF (ARKW) holdings. The sale coincided with bitcoin (BTC) enjoying a bullish surge, which saw it rise above $34,000 for the first time in nearly 18 months. According to FactSet data, Ark holds about 5.6 million GBTC shares, making it the second-largest holder of the trust.

Bitcoin’s momentum is attributed to anticipation of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) finally approving a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) after asset management giant BlackRock listed its proposed ETF on the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation database with the ticker $IBTC.

Grayscale’s GBTC may also be in line to be approved as a spot ETF in the U.S. after its legal fight with the SEC over the rejection of Grayscale’s application to convert the trust into an ETF was ruled in the investment firm’s favor.

Ark also sold about $3.3 million worth of crypto exchange Coinbase shares (COIN) and bought $2.4 million shares of popular trading platform Robinhood (HOOD).

Cathie Wood’s ARK has been known to load up on crypto-adjacent stocks when markets are depressed. This sale of GBTC shares would be an example of the inverse tactic – cashing in on a bullish mood to bank some profits.