Spot Bitcoin ETF: Vanguard CEO Says Firm Won’t Change Its Stance

Tim Buckley, the chairman of the board and CEO of investment banking giant Vanguard has once again declared that his firm will not be a partaker of the spot Bitcoin ETF market.

Vanguard Not Shifting Stance on Spot Bitcoin ETF

Buckley acknowledged that his firm has been receiving a lot of questions about when it intends to consider spot Bitcoin ETFs. He stated that they had even been asked when the firm would change its mind about the product. In response, the Vanguard CEO reiterated that the investment management firm has no plans of changing its stance on spot Bitcoin ETFs but there is a catch.

According to Buckley, the only reason Vanguard may consider delving into the spot Bitcoin ETF sector is if there is a change in BTC’s asset class. Speaking of Bitcoin ETFs, Vanguard believes that “It does not belong in a long-term portfolio” and “it’s not a store of value.” Buckley continued by pointing out that Bitcoin is a speculative asset that does not have an underlying cash flow.

Vanguard has been keen on this “no-crypto” stance for the longest time possible. Right when the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs, Vanguard made it quite clear that it won’t be joining the likes of BlackRock and Grayscale Investments. To further reinforce its stance, the investment management firm removed existing Bitcoin futures products from its brokerage offerings.

The highly speculative and unregulated nature of the broader crypto market are among the reasons cited by Vanguard. It highlighted that these factors conflict with the firm’s existing long-term investing philosophy. Beyond Bitcoin, Vanguard is also weary of any high-risk instrument and does not plan to list them.

Is Vanguard Missing Out?

Many crypto proponent have asked the firm to reconsider its position on the matter. Buckley’s recent comment is a confirmation that no consideration whatsoever has been given to the embrace of spot Bitcoin ETF products. 

With how much trading volume and inflows that the nascent market has seen in the last two months, market observers may imply that Vanguard is losing out but the company does not sound perturbed. 

In addition, Coingape reported that Vanguard is registering more than six times the entire net inflows recorded by all spot Bitcoin ETFs a few weeks ago. This suggests that Vanguard may actually not be missing any market share.