(Benzinga) - James P. Gorman, CEO of Morgan Stanley, believes crypto isn’t going away any time soon.
What Happened: In an earnings call on Thursday, Gorman said: “I don’t think crypto is a fad.”
“I don’t know what the value of Bitcoin should or shouldn’t be. But it’s — these things aren’t going away and the blockchain technology supporting is obviously very real and powerful. So it remains tangible work in space,” he added.
The CEO went on to note that as of now, crypto is “just not a huge part of the business demand” from clients. Still, Gorman said that if the demand does evolve over time, then Morgan Stanley’s business would evolve with it.
“But right now, it’s certainly not what’s driving our economics one way or the other,” he said.
Gorman’s sentiments about the leading crypto asset were similar to those recently expressed by BlackRock, Inc. CEO Larry Fink.
“I can’t tell you whether it’s [Bitcoin] going to be going to $80,000 or zero. But I do believe there is a huge role for a digitized currency, and I believe that’s going to help consumers worldwide,” said Fink.
What Else: As per an SEC filing in August, Morgan Stanley has been steadily acquiring shares in the world’s largest Bitcoin BTC trust, the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust.
The Wall Street banking giant owns 6.5 million shares of GBTC, which amounts to over $290 million at the time of writing.
At press time Friday morning, GBTC shares were trading up at $46.61. The fund was trading at a 16% discount to its Net Asset Value (NAV).
Bitcoin was trading at $59,931.30 at the same time, gaining 4.39% over 24-hours.
By Samyuktha Sriram
October 15, 2021
