- The Michigan Retirement System has increased its holdings in the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF to 300,000 shares.
- The fund continues to hold 460,000 shares in Grayscale’s Ethereum Trust, valued at $13.6 million.
- Recent outflows from Bitcoin ETFs in the market reached $1.4 billion over four days.
- State pension funds in the U.S., including Wisconsin, are expanding digital asset investments.
- Standard Chartered forecasts that institutional pension fund investments will help drive Bitcoin growth in 2025.
The Michigan Retirement System has tripled its exposure to Bitcoin by increasing its stake in the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF to 300,000 shares, valued at $11.4 million as of the second quarter. This move was reported in a recent filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The state’s pension fund, which oversees $19.3 billion in assets, previously held 100,000 shares in the ETF as of March 31. In addition to its Bitcoin investment, the fund maintains an unchanged position in Grayscale’s Ethereum Trust with 460,000 shares worth about $13.6 million, a stake held since September 2024.
According to Ganesh Mahidhar, an investment professional at Further Ventures, “Pension funds operate based on rules around the circulating market cap of any asset, potential upside, and max drawdowns.” A Sharpe ratio, a standard measurement for weighing risk versus reward, plays a key role in investment decisions. Mahidhar noted, “Purchases remain carefully optimistic, and constitute less than 0.1% of their cash portfolio, protecting themselves against significant drawdowns.”
Across the country, U.S. state pension funds are increasing their exposure to digital assets. The State of Wisconsin’s Investment Board now holds over 6 million shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), valued at $387.3 million. Even with growing institutional interest, Bitcoin ETFs have seen four consecutive days of outflows totaling $1.4 billion, according to Farside Investors data. The ARK 21Shares ETF had just one day of outflows in this period, with a $5.1 million withdrawal.
A report from Standard Chartered projects Bitcoin could reach $200,000 by the end of the year, crediting pension funds as a primary source of future growth. The bank expects institutional flows into Bitcoin in 2025 to outpace levels from 2024, specifically from long-only funds like pension plans.
While digital asset investments remain a small part of pension portfolios, industry experts anticipate that pension fund participation could have a significant impact on the crypto market.
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