Wells Fargo, a prominent financial services firm in the United States, has revealed its investments in Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) provided by Grayscale and ProShares. In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on May 10th, Wells Fargo disclosed that it held 37 shares of the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO), which offers exposure to Bitcoin futures, and 2,245 shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), which has been converted into an ETF. Additionally, the firm reported owning 52 shares in Bitcoin Depot, a provider of crypto ATMs. Despite being a major bank with approximately $1.7 trillion in assets as of June 2023, the total value of Wells Fargo’s Bitcoin-related investments amounted to just $143,111, a relatively small holding. It is important to note that the SEC cautioned against assuming the accuracy and completeness of the information provided by the financial firm.
In related news, the SEC granted approval for the listing and trading of spot Bitcoin ETFs on U.S. exchanges in January. Trading firm Susquehanna International Group revealed that it had purchased over $1 billion worth of shares of these spot crypto ETFs in the first quarter of 2024, primarily consisting of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund, and ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF.
For more information on the role of crypto market makers and their impact on liquidity and potential manipulation, please refer to the accompanying article titled “What do crypto market makers actually do? Liquidity, or manipulation.”