Vanguard will allow crypto trading on its platform through mutual funds and ETFs

Source: CritpoTendencia Original Title: Vanguard will allow crypto trading on its platform through mutual funds and ETFs Original Link: The tough times in the cryptocurrency market don’t seem to stop the magnetic pull these assets have on major institutional players. This time, the asset management giant Vanguard announced it will allow crypto product trading on its platform. Specifically, exchange-traded funds (ETF) and mutual funds related to Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other coins.

This is a hugely significant step that leaves behind the financial firm’s previous policy of rejecting the crypto world. Trading will be enabled as soon as this Tuesday, which represents a further boost for the crypto sector among large portfolios.

Until recently, Vanguard’s stance was that digital currencies were too volatile as assets. This, they said, was an obstacle for their involvement in the financial system, as it could create imbalances in serious portfolios. However, it’s the very demand from large and medium-sized portfolios that caused this change of heart within the firm.

Additionally, the leadership probably feels the weight of falling behind other firms that took the first step into the world of virtual currencies. For example, a major competitor already has an established presence in the crypto sector with notable success, even amid sharp market corrections.

Vanguard senses it will be left behind in the crypto sector

Since October, the cryptocurrency market capitalization has lost over $1 billion. This is one of the strongest shocks of recent years in the crypto world and shows no clear signs of reversing in the short term. In this context, Vanguard will allow trading of crypto-based products on its platform.

The math is simple: one platform’s exposure to the sector has brought in $62.5 billion just with its Bitcoin ETF. This is a monumental figure achieved in a relatively short time, which makes corrections like the current one seem secondary from an institutional perspective.

Thus, the narrative of volatility and risk takes a back seat. Keeping that stance would have deprived Vanguard of maintaining its competitiveness amid the financial system’s evolutionary process and its convergence with the blockchain.

Cryptocurrency ETFs and mutual funds have been tested during periods of market volatility and have performed as intended, while maintaining liquidity, noted the firm’s head of brokerage and investment, Andrew Kadjeski, in September. At that time, Vanguard gave the first indication of its shift in stance toward crypto trading.