Grayscale names Peter Mintzberg as CEO amid competitive shake-up

admin — Thu, 15 Aug 2024 19:14:47 +0000

Peter Mintzberg has taken over as the CEO of the digital asset management firm Grayscale, according to an Aug. 15 announcement.

The new appointment comes roughly three months after Grayscale’s former CEO, Michael Sonnenshein, resigned for undisclosed reasons.

Mintzberg, who has extensive experience in the financial sector, previously served as Head of Strategy at BlackRock and Goldman Sachs. His background also includes roles in strategy, mergers and acquisitions, and investor relations at OppenheimerFunds and Invesco.

In his post on X, Mintzberg highlighted his enthusiasm for leading Grayscale and emphasized the rapid growth of the crypto sector in asset management. He expressed eagerness to work with the Grayscale team to enhance the company’s success and serve its clients effectively.

Grayscale is a significant player in the global crypto asset management market. The firm was instrumental in persuading the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to approve Bitcoin spot-based exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in January, overcoming the regulator’s previous rejections.

However, Grayscale faces increased competition as several traditional financial institutions, like BlackRock and Fidelity, enter the crypto sector. Notably, BlackRock has overtaken Grayscale as the largest digital asset fund manager by assets under management.

This shift is partly due to significant outflows from Grayscale’s high-cost Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs. Investors have moved to more affordable options, such as the BlackRock iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT), leading to a decline in Grayscale’s assets.

Despite these challenges, Grayscale continues introducing new crypto trust products, including those focused on decentralized AI projects and the DeFi protocol MakerDAO.

Nevertheless, market observers are interested in how Mintzberg will navigate recent challenges and help the firm regain its market leadership status. However, Barry Silbert, the CEO of Grayscale’s parent company, Digital Currency Group, expressed confidence in Mintzberg’s ability to drive innovation and growth that would drive the company’s growth.

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Invesco Metaverse: the fund for the metaverse

admin — Wed, 24 Aug 2022 08:08:59 +0000

Invesco Metaverse is the new fund launched by investment giant Invesco, which aims to invest in small, mid, and large-cap industry startups.

Invesco Metaverse: the fund dedicated to new opportunities in the metaverse

Invesco, an independent investment management firm based in Atlanta, Georgia (USA), has launched its Invesco Metaverse fund, to be dedicated to new industry opportunities.

In fact, according to reports, Invesco Metaverse’s goal is to invest in metaverse technology-focused startups of small, medium, and large capitalization, worldwide.

With branches in as many as 20 countries, the company’s new fund will be able to analyze industry startups that, for example, use Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT), Augmented Reality (AR), Play-To-Earn (P2E) games, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in their virtual worlds.

Managing the Invesco Metaverse will be fund manager Tony Roberts and deputy fund manager James McDermottroe.

The new fund to invest in the growth of the metaverse

Invesco Metaverse and metaverse sector growth forecasts

The metaverse is attracting more and more market players, from entertainment to fashion, real estate, gaming, and more, with a general forecast of growth.

In fact, Roberts, the fund manager of the Invesco Metaverse fund, also wanted to comment on this:

“While the applications of the metaverse to entertainment are increasingly well understood, the interconnectivity it enables is likely to have a transformative impact in sectors as diverse as healthcare, logistics, education, and sports […]. We will seek to capitalize on these opportunities through a highly selective and careful approach to valuations. […] It has been estimated that, by 2030, virtual and augmented reality could provide a £1.4 trillion boost to the global economy.”

The news from the Invesco Metaverse fund follows several companies and organizations that continue to enter the sector.

Chainalysis: the rapid adoption of the metaverse is the latest Web3 trend

In early July, Chainalysis released its report stating that rapid adoption of the metaverse is the latest Web3 trend, with data continuing to rise.

In fact, among its collected data, Chainalysis mentioned that Travis Scott’s Fortnite concert was attended by 27 million people, JP Morgan had a virtual property lease, and the Vatican also opened an NFT art gallery.

This dimension and immersive experiences are increasingly engaging more people, but also institutions of all types.

Specifically, the report states that real estate and gaming are on the rise in the metaverse. From September 2019 to March 2022, blockchain-based virtual real estate prices grew by 879%, while in gaming, from 2017 to 2021 VR game revenue had a compound annual growth rate of 28.5%.

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