Michigan’s State Pension Fund Invests Millions in Bitcoin ETF

The state pension fund of Michigan has made millions of dollars in investments in the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF), according to recently released records. According to a recent 13-F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the State of Michigan Retirement System (SMRS) paid approximately $6.6 million for 110,000 shares of the ARK 21Shares BTC ETF (ARKB).

Eric Balchunas, a senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, noted the significance of this move: “Just checked and yes, [it] looks like Michigan’s Pension bought up some ARKB (although we have it as $7.4 million) which is small percentage-wise for them but it’s a start, they [are] now [the] third pension to report owning a BTC ETF.” This investment makes Michigan the third state pension fund to include a BTC ETF in its portfolio, reflecting a broader trend of institutional interest in cryptocurrencies.

Performance and Market Presence

As of right now, the ARK 21Shares BTC ETF is up 5.3% over the previous day, trading at $68.04. VettaFi, a data analytics platform that focuses on exchange-traded funds (ETFs), states that with $3.241 billion in total assets, ARKB is the fourth-largest BTC ETF available. This substantial asset base highlights how Bitcoin is becoming more and more accepted and integrated into conventional financial portfolios.

$19.42 billion in assets are managed by the State of Michigan Retirement System for the benefit of state employees, including those employed by public schools. This calculated entry into the Bitcoin ETF space demonstrates the pension fund’s forward-thinking but cautious approach to portfolio diversification.

This isn’t an isolated instance of state pension funds investing in cryptocurrency. In March, SEC filings revealed that the State of Wisconsin Investment Board holds $163 million worth of combined shares in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). These moves highlight a growing confidence among institutional investors in the potential of cryptocurrency as a viable asset class.