BlackRock Doubles Down on Ethereum, Signaling a Broader Shift in the Digital Assets Landscape

In a pronounced shift in the digital assets landscape, the world's largest asset manager, BlackRock, signaled a stronger alignment with public blockchain

World’s largest asset manager pivots towards public blockchains, favoring Ethereum

Key Takeaways

BlackRock’s Chief Investment Officer for ETF and Index Investments stated at Coinbase’s State of Crypto Summit that private permissioned blockchains were initially favored to lead the market a few years ago. However, recent observations show that public blockchains are better suited for the financial ecosystem.

This aligns with BlackRock's recent launch of its first tokenization project on the Ethereum blockchain in March. Together with Securitize, an institutional digital asset securities platform in the United States, they brought an initial liquidity of $100 million in USD Coin (USDC) to the platform.

The fund, which is designed to tokenize a portion of BlackRock’s “Institutional Digital Liquidity” fund, will be fully integrated into the Ethereum network as the fund primarily invests in cash, short-term debt securities, and US Treasury bonds.

While speaking separately, Hunter Horsley, CEO of Bitwise, also confirmed that BlackRock is shifting towards public blockchains. He noted the conclusion of the longstanding debate between the merits of permissioned versus permissionless blockchains, stating, “This used to be a debate. Quietly, the will has been settled: permissionless.”

Acclaimed angel investor, advisor and founder of The Daily Gwei, Anthony Sassano, commented on the development, stating, “Seriously read and digest this. An executive at BlackRock (the largest asset manager in the world) is telling you that the future is public blockchains – specifically, that the future is Ethereum! If this doesn’t make you bullish, nothing will.”

The panel discussions also featured commentary on the year 2024 being pivotal for the deeper integration of cryptocurrencies and traditional financial (TradFi) sectors through instruments like ETFs and the tokenization of assets, among other topics.

The consensus among these financial leaders underscores a significant trend: the integration of blockchain technology into mainstream financial practices is not only increasing but is doing so through platforms that offer transparency, accessibility, and broad governance. Ethereum’s preference over permissioned blockchains by institutions like BlackRock marks a noteworthy development.

News source：https://www.kdj.com/cryptocurrencies-news/articles/blackrock-doubles-ethereum-signaling-broader-shift-digital-assets-landscape.html

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