Almost 2% of the world’s Bitcoin (BTC) supply is now under the control of a single company: Grayscale and its Bitcoin Trust (GBTC).
In its latest quarterly report on April 16, Grayscale revealed that GBTC now contains 1.7% of the circulating supply of Bitcoin.
Bitcoin investors shun “risk-off” mood
In terms of assets under management as a proportion of the total cryptocurrency market cap, Grayscale controls 1.2% of the world’s crypto.
The Bitcoin ownership figure is up 0.1% since the end of 2019, underscoring the fact that the huge market uncertainty sparked by coronavirus has yet to reverse Grayscale’s fortunes.
Overall, Grayscale’s ten crypto funds attracted over $500 million in investments, making it its best quarter on record.
“Quarter-over-quarter inflows more than doubled to $503.7 million, demonstrating demand is reaching new peak levels, even in a ‘risk-off’ environment,” the report summarizes.
Grayscale market share, 2013-present. Source: Grayscale
As Cointelegraph reported, institutional investors have appeared to weather the coronavirus storm with particular resilience. Activity across Bitcoin futures markets, for example, bounced back from March lows within weeks.
In terms of investment in Q1 2020, Grayscale meanwhile said that hedge funds made up the vast majority of cash, at 88% of the total.
“The mandate and strategic focus of these funds is broadly mixed and includes Multi-Strat, Global Macro, Arbitrage, Long/Short Equity, Event Driven, and Crypto-focused funds,” the report adds.
Institutional sentiment in flux
Despite mixed opinions as to the impact of vast swathes of institutional investors handling Bitcoin, either directly or indirectly, a survey this week suggested that users no longer see the sector as the main threat to Bitcoin price stability.
Instead, macro factors including coronavirus are the main area of concern, the roughly 10,000 responses to the survey by stock-to-flow creator PlanB revealed.
Previously, futures markets in particular formed the center of speculation over price manipulation.
