Even as the cryptocurrency market shows a bearish sentiment and stagnant price movement, the interest in these digital assets has been increasing steadily in recent months. Once considered to be an unregulated asset class with no future is now being invested in by some of the biggest financial institutions in the world.
The price of Bitcoin had plunged from its all-time high of around $69,000 in 2021 to less than $19,000 when retail investors started to exit the markets in order to cut losses. However, major investors and organizations have since taken advantage of the discounted prices to stock up on their cryptocurrency reserves.
As a result, major cryptocurrency companies and VC firms have been putting efforts to partner with each other to bring their product offerings into the blockchain world. With national governments of various countries starting to embrace the concept of cryptocurrencies, these partnerships may result in great success for the parties involved.
The community has been creating buzz around the latest partnership in the blockchain space. Two of the biggest players in their fields, Blackrock and Coinbase have come together to provide service to institutional investors
What is Coinbase?
Coinbase is one of the most popular cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. Founded by ex-Airbnb Engineer Brian Armstrong and launched in June 2012, Coinbase has positioned itself as a representative organization of the entire cryptocurrency industry to an extent.
As a company that caters to more than 98 million users, Coinbase is a secure platform for users to easily buy and store cryptocurrencies of their choice.
With its motto of ‘putting cryptocurrencies into everyone’s wallets’, the organization has made headlines due to the impact it had on token prices whenever there was speculation around the exchange listing it.
It is also the first-ever cryptocurrency company to be listed on the NASDAQ. The company features a no headquarters policy and is operated by a network of professionals from all around the world. The CEO Brian Armstrong had recently announced that the company would be laying off some of its employees to cut costs.
What is BlackRock?
BlackRock is famous as the biggest and one of the most powerful financial organizations in the world. Founded by a group of finance experts way back in 1988, BlackRock started off as a risk management and fixed income institutional asset manager.
The American Investment management corporation has since grown to become a huge part of the finance community with stakes in some of the largest brands around. The organization operates with over 70 offices in 30 countries and clients in over 100 countries. It is currently the largest asset manager, with over $10 trillion worth of assets under its management wing.
While the company has been slammed in the past for several reasons like its part in worsening climate change or close ties with the Federal Reserve System, Blackrock has still publicly had several initiatives and participation in the social, environmental and social governance sector.
About the Partnership
The main announcement came through a blog post by Coinbase on August 4th, when they mentioned their latest alliance with the finance giant. The companies aim to join their major offering, Coinbase Prime and Alladin respectively to provide access points to institutional investors.
Put in simple terms, investors of BlackRock will now have easy access to investing in cryptocurrencies in massive quantities. Joseph Chalom, the Global Head of Strategic Ecosystems Partnerships stated that their clients had shown an increasing interest in these digital assets.
With Alladin, investors will have direct interaction with their assets and can manage the risk accordingly. Access to the same and liquidity will be provided through Coinbase Prime. Developers are currently working on scaling the platform and making it more accessible. The advancements are expected shortly in several phases.
CEO of BlackRock Larry Fink had previously mentioned the company’s interest in exploring the blockchain industry and making investment options within the sector available for their investors.
On asked about the developments and partnership with BlackRock, Coinbase President Emilie Choi mentioned the experience and expertise of BlackRock as an investment management firm. She also stated that the partnership will allow a wider, and perhaps more affluent community to become a part of the blockchain world.
