Man Group, the world’s largest publicly traded hedge fund company, reporting $103.5 billion in funds under management as of September 2017, announced its readiness to add Bitcoin to its portfolio.
The CEO of Man Group, Luke Ellis, expressed his positive opinion on Bitcoin and its potential addition to the products the hedge fund manages, especially if bitcoin futures become a reality in the near future, according to a Business Insider report.
While Mr. Ellis recognises the clash and difficulties cryptocurrencies face at the moment, he also added, during the Reuters Global Investment Outlook Summit in London:
“Conceptually digital currencies are an interesting thing. It’s not part of our investment universe today – it could be. If there is a CME future on bitcoin, it would be.”
The CME Group announced that the bitcoin futures will be ready in early December, 2017, which immediately increased the price of bitcoin. The creation and launch of such a product boosted the confidence in investors and while cryptocurrencies may face the harsh reality of regulation and bureaucracy from governments and central banks, the financial industry is being disrupted. Companies now realise the power and potential of bitcoin, whose market capitalization ($109 billion) now surpasses that of Goldman Sachs (around $88 billion).
In addition to commenting on bitcoin, Ellis added:
“There is a big difference between a digital currency and a traditional currency…Traditional ones are supported by governments who have armies and tax men that can make people follow their rules, and digital ones don‘t. But that doesn’t invalidate digital currencies at all.”