Wall Street Whale Dives into Bitcoin: Susquehanna Snags $1.2 Billion Position

Wall Street behemoth Susquehanna International Group, known for its vast trading volume across global financial products, has significantly increased its exposure to the flagship cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC), amassing a $1.2 billion position on it in Q1 2024.

According to a recent 13-HR filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Susquehanna International now holds a massive17,271,326 shares in the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), valued at roughly $1.09 billion as of March 31, as well as 1,349,414 shares of Fidelity’s spot Bitcoin ETF (FBTC), valued at approximately $83.74 million.

Additionally, the firm significantly increased its stake in the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO), which offers exposure to Bitcoin futures contracts. Susquehanna’s BITO holdings jumped 57.59% since February, currently sitting at 7,907,827 shares valued at roughly $255.42 million.

The firm’s Bitcoin ETF portfolio extends beyond these core holdings, with stakes in prominent funds offered by BlackRock, ARK Invest, Bitwise, Valkyrie, Invesco Galaxy, VanEck, and WisdomTree.

While substantial, Susquehanna’s Bitcoin ETF allocation remains a modest fraction of its overall portfolio, estimated at over $575.8 billion. The $1.2 billion in Bitcoin ETFs represents roughly 0.22% of the firm’s holdings, signifying a cautious yet significant foray into the digital asset space.

The move comes at a time in which Bitcoin’s price is seemingly recovering from a significant downturn that saw its price drop below the $57,000 mark before recovering. BTC is now trading at $62,200.

Arthur Hayes, the founder of popular cryptocurrency derivatives trading platform BitMEX, has recently shared his analysis of the recent turmoil in the cryptocurrency markets. He predicted a local bottom has been hit and suggests upcoming rangebound action.

In a post titled “Mayday” on the BitMEX blog, Hayes attributed the volatility seen in the cryptocurrency space to a confluence of factors that included the conclusion of the U.S. tax season, anxieties surrounding potential Federal Reserve policy changes, Bitcoin’s recent halving event, and stagnant growth in assets under management for spot U.S. Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Hayes recommended investors reenter the market as the “slow addition of billions of dollars of liquidity each month will dampen negative price movement from here on out,” and while he doesn’t expected “ crypto to fully realize the recent US monetary announcements’ inflationary nature immediately, I expect prices to bottom, chop, and begin a slow grind higher. “

Per his words the “recent intense puke” provides him an opportunity to buy Solana and “doggie coins for momentum trading position,” while longer-term position will see him “identify other tokens” he believes are undervalued.

He noted that after accumulating this month he will “ set it, forget it, and wait for the market to appreciate the inflationary nature of the recent US monetary policy announcements.”

Featured image via Unsplash.