We have never lost interest: Asian family offices buy in crypto

Family Offices in Asia buy in cryptocurrencies despite months of market turbulence, as weak returns from their traditional portfolios make digital assets attractive.

The interest of investment managers indicates that there are still new buyers of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and ether after a boom had turned into a bankruptcy at the prices for digital assets in 2020 and 2021.

Several family offices and wealthy private individuals in Hong Kong said this year's decline in prices for digital assets must be weighed up against the poor development of local stock and real estate markets.

After the cryptocurrency prices experienced volatility in the first half of the year, they recently reached a plateau, which led to speculation about whether they reached the valley sole. Investors said that the assets remained attractive protection against wider market movements.

"We have never lost interest [Crypto]," said Keith Wong, Chief Executive by Winland Wealth Management, a multifamily office based in Hong Kong. "We see it as a diversification and as a separate investment class."

A survey published on Monday by KPMG China and the Aspen Digital Crypta Group on 30 Family Offices and wealthy investors in Hong Kong and Singapore showed that 92 percent of the respondents were interested in digital assets, 58 percent already invested and have already invested this.

More than 60 percent of the respondents were family offices or individuals who manage assets worth $ 10 to $ 500 million, according to the report.

Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency, has fallen by about 70 percent since its high in November 2021 and has been traded between $ 18,000 and $ 25,000 since June. Ether, the next largest coin after market capitalization, has dropped by about 60 percent since the beginning of the year.

However, Hong Kong's traditional asset classes also suffered this year, since the city's shares remained behind the American and European shares. The benchmark-slope-Seng index has fallen by more than 30 percent this year because it was hit by geopolitical tensions and repeated Covid 19-lockdowns on the Chinese mainland.

The city's housing market has broken down after years of coronavirus restrictions and successive interest rate increases since the 2008 financial crisis.

"All [My] Friends of Family Offices say..

The focus is on family offices, since crypto companies in Hong Kong operate lobbying for license requirements for regulatory authorities that will come into force in March. The industry fears that the rules will exclude access for small investors.

"For the average wealthy private individual.

The Raffles Family Office based in Hong Kong founded a joint venture with the crypto company Huobi Tech in order to operate the "unfulfilled" needs of ultra -rich families who want to invest in digital asset. C Capital, the asset manager, founded by Hong Kong Tycoon Adrian Cheng, plans to raise around $ 200 million for investments in blockchain assets in the next 18 months.

digital assets are faced with a generation separation, said consultants, with crypto companies striving to tap "old money" from people who are more resistant to the new investment class.

"For example.

In the long term, this cross-generational dynamics will bring more crypto buyers "from the older side of the population pyramid", said Bricks and Mortar’s Wong.