Citadel CEO Griffin announces crypto commitment
Kenneth Griffin’s recent statements on a talk show are evidence of a change in thinking when it comes to crypto. The Citadel CEO was always considered a staunch critic of cryptocurrencies until now: His hedge fund Citadel LLC wants to show more commitment in the field of cryptocurrencies. Kenneth Griffin is listed as the third richest hedge fund manager in the world on Forbes’ 2021 list. His fortune is estimated at $16 billion, putting him behind only investment legends Jim Simons ($25 billion) and Ray Dalio ($20 billion). The hedge fund Citadel LLC manages assets worth more than 38 billion US dollars. With Citadel’s considerable influence, it is clear that Griffin’s statement will have a noticeable impact on the crypto market.
From critic to fan
In the past, Griffin was still a fierce critic of cryptocurrencies, drawing comparisons in 2017 to the Dutch tulip craze of the 17th century. Back then, wild speculation multiplied the price of tulips within a few months before they panicked and plummeted. Griffin at the time: “Such bubbles usually end in tears. And I worry about how this bubble might end.” In October 2021, Griffin made his presence felt again, calling Bitcoin supporters “jihadists” who would be better off investing in the U.S. dollar. But now there has been a radical about-face: The hedge fund manager admitted he was wrong. “Cryptocurrencies have been one of the great success stories in finance over the last 15 years,” Griffin said on the Bloomberg talk show “Bloomberg Wealth with David Rubenstein.” He now called the growth of the crypto-verse “extraordinary” – an unexpected change of opinion that generated a lot of attention among crypto enthusiasts.
Griffin wants to get involved in cryptocurrencies
What’s clear: Investors like Griffin are diehard calculators. Trading cryptocurrencies should offer great profit potential for his hedge fund, especially since a large portion of his clients are interested in it: Part of Griffin’s fund is the Citadel Securities division, through which up to forty percent of the American trading volume of small investors is traded. As a market maker, Citadel Securities ensures that there is sufficient liquidity in the market, which in turn enables supply and demand to meet in a time-efficient manner. While Citadel Securities’ market making activities have so far been largely limited to equities and derivatives, it is now seriously considering entering crypto transactions, especially as more and more investors are becoming interested in crypto investments.
This is supported, in addition to the full-bodied statement on television, above all by the announcement of an investment of 1.15 billion US dollars in the two crypto venture capital companies Sequoia Capital and Paradigm, which had taken place in January. Griffin is particularly bullish on Ethereum, as Ethereum is said to be more environmentally friendly than Bitcoin.
“The Wolf of Wall Street” is also on board.
Griffin isn’t the only one who has revised his opinion regarding the crypto world – Jordan Belfort, who many investors may know from the Hollywood flick “The Wolf of Wall Street” (2013), recently predicted that the Bitcoin price would rise to $100,000. Whereas Belfort had initially considered cryptocurrencies to be ridiculous hype, he has since praised the benefits of blockchain technology. So if even hard-core big investors are becoming crypto fans, the bursting of the much-cited “bubble” is likely to be a bit longer in coming…