UK investment manager shifts allocation to Bitcoin from gold in ‘defensive move’

A United Kingdom-based investment manager has added Bitcoin (BTC) to its portfolio, underscoring the ongoing institutional shift toward digital assets.

Ruffer Investment Company Limited, an investment manager with shares listed on the London Stock Exchange, has disclosed its new Bitcoin strategy.

In a performance update and manager comment posted on Tuesday, Ruffer said it has added Bitcoin to its Multi-Strategies Fund, primarily as a defensive move against the “continued devaluation” of fiat money. The fund now holds roughly 2.5% of its assets in Bitcoin.

The allocation was made in November after Ruffer reduced its exposure to gold in favor of BTC.

The firm said:

“We see this as a small but potent insurance policy against the continuing devaluation of the world's major currencies. Bitcoin diversifies the company's (much larger) investments in gold and inflation-linked bonds, and acts as a hedge to some of the monetary and market risks that we see.”

Founded in 1994, Ruffer has 20.3 billion euros ($27.2 billion) in assets under management as of Nov. 30. The firm has roughly 6,600 clients worldwide compromised of individuals, families, pension funds and charities.

Ruffer’s move echoes a recent call by JPMorgan Chase that Bitcoin is quietly eating gold’s market share. In a note to clients that was released last week, quantitative strategies led by Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou said Bitcoin adoption could lead to “structural headwinds” for gold.

The strategists wrote:

“If this medium to longer-term thesis proves right, the price of gold would suffer from a structural headwind over the coming years.”

2020 has gone down as a transformative year for Bitcoin, with firms like Grayscale, PayPal, MicroStrategy and MassMutual rewriting the narrative on digital assets. 

Crypto pioneer and ShapeShift CEO Erik Voorhees believes powerful institutional players will shield assets like Bitcoin from government overreach. With major institutions in play, the Bitcoin market is forming a natural "bulwark" against intrusive regulations.