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Everyone used to think owning stuff was cool. That was before investors started looking for insights in cocky publications with funny memes. Now everyone believes owning crypto is cool, including the largest pension fund in the world – The Government Pension Fund of Japan (GPIF).
But hey, don’t let the memes fool you. 60% of people are more likely to convert into loyal customers if a business uses memes. If David Ogilvy were to be here, he’d really agree with us on “the best ideas come as jokes”
Back to Owning Stuff Vs Bitcoin
It’s not that owning stuff is not cool. If you are the sort of guy who types into a search bar ‘famous folks who made their fortune in real estate’, probably we respect your perspective about hodling property, But there is something about crypto, Bitcoin in particular, that makes it more faithful in delivering returns than most traditional assets.
First of all its new, Bitcoin is new. Its age when compared to commodities like Gold, Oil, and Silver is like a small dot punctuating a very long sentence. Gold is almost 4 billion years old while Bitcoin is only 15, and in those 15 years it has managed to grow a strong footprint of hodlers, retail traders, and supporters. To the extent of toppling Silver from the second leading asset. Aside from age and being pretty promising, Bitcoin’s supply is capped at 21 million which makes it scarce and valuable.
Related: Bitcoin and Gold Approach the Highest Correlation After ETFs Hit the Market
After being traded on DeFi markets for nearly one and half a decade now, the biggest cryptocurrency is now accessible to retail traders in traditional financial markets. This is thanks to the approval of Bitcoin ETFs by the SEC, an event that took place at the start of this year.
John Wooden, nicknamed the Wizard of Westwood who won 7 basketball championships in a span of 12 years is most famous for coining, “Show me your friends and I will tell you who you are” How successful you will be at the things you do somewhat depends on the folks around you, no wonder the Government Pension Fund (GPIF) of Japan is looking towards surrounding itself with only the best assets.
A 5-year Research Initiative
The GPIF announced on Tuesday a 5-year research initiative to evaluate various investment diversification methods by using a combination of risk and sustainability assessment. According to the announcement, assets in its fund include bonds and stocks, private equity, real estate, and infrastructure.
Our primary investment strategy is diversification by asset class, region, and timeframe. While market prices may fluctuate in the short term, GPIF will take full advantage of our long-term investment horizon to achieve investment returns in a more stable and efficient manner.
With the upcoming research, the Japanese government fund aims to explore bitcoin, gold, farmland, and forests. The fund hopes to incorporate these new assets into its pension fund portfolio if they manage to pass its risk assessment. However, there is no official confirmation or indication that GPIF is going to invest in BTC.
According to a GPIF spokesperson, these new developments and roadmap follow the rapid changes in technology innovations and major improvements across the economy and society. For these reasons, the fund is looking forward to developing new long-term investment policies in response to the changes.
The news comes at the height of Bitcoin’s peak near all-time highs and a 130% price rally over the last one year. One of the narratives driving the rally is the launch of bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the United States at the start of 2024. This announcement is also against the backdrop of a proposed bill that will allow investment funds in Japan to hold digital assets such as Bitcoin.
More on Bitcoin:
- Fake Bitcoin ETF Tweet Triggers SEC and Twitter Investigations
- Bitcoin Has Gained Legality Within Honduras
But hey, is Bitcoin good for retirement funds? YES, it could make the fund retire faster. And NO, it could make the fund go broke before it retires. It all depends on which side you are, the bulls or the bears.
For the bulls, it might probably take years until pension funds like Japan’s implement Bitcoin in their portfolios, until then, stay SAFU.
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