Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund, Mubadala Investment Company, and the State of Wisconsin Investment Board have both disclosed their exposure to Bitcoin through BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) exchange-traded fund (ETF) in recent 13F form filings.
Mubadala Investment Company’s filing reveals that they hold over 8.2 million shares of IBIT, valued at nearly $437 million. This represents 0.14% of the $302 billion assets under their management. Reports from the Abu Dhabi Bitcoin Summit in November indicated that Gulf Oil nations, including Abu Dhabi, were investing in Bitcoin.
Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former CEO of Binance, highlighted that the report specifically references one of Abu Dhabi’s numerous sovereign wealth funds. Other significant investment entities in Abu Dhabi include the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), the Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Company (ADQ), and the Emirates Investment Authority (EIA). Together, these four sovereign wealth funds manage an estimated $1.6 trillion collectively.
Sina G., the COO of 21st Capital, stated that Abu Dhabi’s move marks the beginning of the “nation-state Bitcoin adoption race.” This investment solidifies Abu Dhabi’s efforts to establish itself as a prominent jurisdiction in the cryptocurrency space. The capital of the United Arab Emirates recently integrated Tether USD (USDT) stablecoin into its financial system and collaborated with Coinbase and Chainlink to enhance institutional adoption in the region.
On the other hand, the State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB) has significantly increased its exposure to Bitcoin through IBIT by nearly 110% compared to its previous quarter. In their latest filing, SWIB disclosed holding 6,060,351 shares of IBIT, valued at $321.5 million as of December 31. IBIT is the sole Bitcoin ETF in which SWIB has exposure, following the realization of 1 million shares of Grayscale’s GBTC.
SWIB is an independent state agency responsible for managing the assets of the Wisconsin Retirement System, the State Investment Fund (SIF), and other state funds.
Overall, these disclosures from Mubadala Investment Company and the State of Wisconsin Investment Board highlight the growing interest and adoption of Bitcoin among institutional investors. As more sovereign wealth funds and state entities allocate funds to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, the digital asset market continues to gain traction and legitimacy in the traditional financial landscape.