Once considered speculative investments, cryptocurrencies are becoming increasingly mainstream. In Europe, WisdomTree is at the forefront of leading that charge. The global financial services firm offers a number of exchange-traded products (ETPs) that offer diversification and an incredibly easy way to buy and sell crypto assets.
Here Dovile Silenskyte, WisdomTree’s Director of Digital Assets Research, discusses crypto’s evolution as an asset class, the most recent adoption trends and WisdomTree’s latest ETP based on the CoinDesk 20 index.
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How do you see crypto becoming more akin to a traditional asset class?
As with every asset class, diversification is essential. Investors diversify across and within equity and bond positions, so it should be no different when considering allocating capital to cryptocurrencies. Relying solely on bitcoin is akin to holding only one stock in an equity portfolio, which is a suboptimal strategy in terms of risk-adjusted returns. A well-diversified approach across multiple digital assets can enhance exposure to the broader growth of the sector.
As the digital asset class evolves, investors require a benchmark to measure performance, invest and trade. The CoinDesk 20 index serves as the benchmark index for the crypto industry and is the world’s most traded crypto index — it could be viewed as the S&P 500 of crypto. Taking a broad and diversified approach through the CoinDesk 20 provides a practical way to access opportunities across the digital asset market.
For investors who lack access to deep crypto knowledge, broad-based crypto indices offer a streamlined way to gain market exposure without the complexities of token selection. Just as ETF investors use index-based funds to gain equity exposure without stock-picking, a diversified crypto index allows for systematic, passive participation in the growth of digital assets.
What kind of adoption trends have you seen in the past? Are there geographical nuances you’ve observed?
After more than 15 years of existence, multiple boom-and-bust cycles and over half a billion users, cryptocurrencies have cemented their place as a major asset class rather than a passing trend. Bitcoin and ether have become integral components of institutional portfolios.
Despite cryptocurrencies’ long-term growth potential, many investors are still unsure. With a total market cap of approximately $3 trillion, the ecosystem and use cases are growing steadily. The crypto market is now of a similar (or larger) size as staple institutional investments such as high-yield bonds, inflation-linked bonds and emerging markets small caps.
Crypto adoption is not monolithic — it varies across geographies based on regulatory landscapes, institutional infrastructure and economic needs. Europe is leading the way with investors being able to invest into bitcoin exchange-traded products for the last 5+ years and now having access to a broad range of single coin and crypto basket ETPs.
How is WisdomTree enabling this next phase of growth beyond bitcoin?
WisdomTree has been providing access to crypto via ETPs since 2019. It has since grown its range to include ETPs providing exposure to five other individual coins and four diversified basket products, including its new ETP providing exposure to the CoinDesk 20. WisdomTree’s crypto ETPs leverage institutional-grade storage solutions ensuring high levels of security, and some of them also generate a staking yield. By incorporating staking into a crypto ETP, investors can gain exposure to the growth of these networks while also participating in their security and governance.
Tell us more about the WisdomTree Physical CoinDesk 20 ETP that you just launched.
The strategy helps investors avoid the complexities of selecting individual assets, as it aims to provide secure and diversified exposure to approximately 90% of the crypto market by market cap, helping shape the next wave of innovation. The strategy also provides a highly diversified entry point into the crypto ecosystem, further democratizing access to a historically difficult part of the market to get exposure to. And finally, the strategy also aims to provide staking yield.
Where can someone get additional information?
European investors can access more information about WisdomTree’s physically-backed crypto ETP range here.
Disclosure: This material is prepared by WisdomTree and its affiliates and is not intended to be relied upon as a forecast, research or investment advice, and is not a recommendation, offer or solicitation to buy or sell any securities or to adopt any investment strategy. The opinions expressed are as of the date of production and may change as subsequent conditions vary. The information and opinions contained in this material are derived from proprietary and non-proprietary sources. As such, no warranty of accuracy or reliability is given and no responsibility arising in any other way for errors and omissions (including responsibility to any person by reason of negligence) is accepted by WisdomTree, nor any affiliate, nor any of their officers, employees or agents. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the reader. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.
Authors’ views and opinions are their own and not associated with CoinDesk Indices. The interview was conducted by CoinDesk Indices and is not associated with CoinDesk editorial.
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