According to Michael Shaulov, CEO and co-founder of institutional custody platform Fireblocks, while a BlackRock spot Bitcoin ETF may bring new institutional money to Bitcoin, it is ultimately the retail investors who will drive significant price surges. Shaulov noted that previous massive inflows of institutional money in mid-2020 did not appreciate prices until retail investors became frenzied over crypto assets later in the year. The physics of Bitcoin, mainly its finite supply, means that any mass buy-up of Bitcoin should end up moving the needle.
Bitcoin’s Narrative for Institutions
Shaulov believes that the narrative over Bitcoin is still playing out for institutions and that numerous Bitcoin-based narratives are still at play. He believes Bitcoin is the “ultimate insurance asset” since it has all the necessary properties when everything gets worse. It is an asset that is disconnected from the government, can be digitally native, and moved easily. It doesn’t matter if it’s worth $15,000, $20,000, or $60,000 at one point; you just need to have enough of it in that variance to survive a period.