{"id":62264,"date":"2026-03-02T09:24:21","date_gmt":"2026-03-02T02:24:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hbbgroup.net\/bitcoin-losing-trillions-in-value-hasnt-stopped-traditional-giants-interest-in-digital-assets-sector\/"},"modified":"2026-03-02T09:24:21","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T02:24:21","slug":"bitcoin-losing-trillions-in-value-hasnt-stopped-traditional-giants-interest-in-digital-assets-sector","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hbbgroup.net\/zh\/bitcoin-losing-trillions-in-value-hasnt-stopped-traditional-giants-interest-in-digital-assets-sector\/","title":{"rendered":"Bitcoin losing trillions in value hasn’t stopped traditional giants’ interest in digital assets sector"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Bitcoin losing trillions in value hasn’t stopped traditional giants’ interest in digital assets sector<\/h2>\n

At the iConnections conference in Miami this week, allocators signaled digital assets are now a core sleeve in alternatives.<\/h2>\n

Mar 1, 2026, 5:07 p.m. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The mood around digital assets has shifted again among the world\u2019s largest allocators, according to Ron Biscardi, CEO of iConnections, which runs one of the largest capital introduction conferences globally.<\/p>\n

Biscardi, who has spent more than 25 years in the alternative investment industry and runs a platform that represents over $55 trillion in assets, has a front-row seat. His firm tracks thousands of meetings between fund managers and institutional investors each year. That data shows how quickly sentiment can turn.<\/p>\n

After a couple of “rough” years following the crypto market crash following the FTX collapse in 2022, interest began to stabilize at last year’s conference, he recalls. \u201c[In 2025] we started to see funds wanting to come back, wanting to spend some money,\u201d he said. Optimism around a more crypto-friendly regulatory stance in Washington helped, even if progress has been slow.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like what we’re seeing now at the event [this year] is a more normal experience,\u201d Biscardi said. \u201cIt’s not extremely crazy, but it\u2019s also not [like] ‘I don’t want to go anywhere near it.’\u201d<\/p>\n

A change of tone<\/h2>\n

More than 75 digital asset funds participated in this year\u2019s event, generating roughly 750 meetings between managers and allocators, a level comparable to 2022 when crypto interest soared before the FTX collapse. Nearly one quarter of limited partners on the iConnections platform now indicate interest in digital asset strategies, reinforcing that crypto has become an established sleeve within alternatives rather than a fringe allocation. <\/p>\n

Family offices represent the largest LP cohort expressing interest, consistent with their track record of backing emerging and innovation-driven asset classes.<\/p>\n

And this trend has been growing in recent years. While some family offices remain cautious<\/a> about the asset, many traditional wealth managers are under mounting pressure<\/a> to deliver digital assets to wealthy clients, particularly in crypto hotspots like Dubai, Switzerland and Singapore.<\/p>\n

This interest is very much alive despite the crypto winter, with the price of bitcoin BTC<\/span><\/svg><\/span>$66,270.93<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span> down nearly 25% since the beginning of the year and its market cap losing more than a trillion in value since October’s all-time high. Stocks of popular crypto companies, like Coinbase (COIN) or Strategy (MSTR), are also trading significantly lower this year, underperforming most other tech stocks. <\/p>\n

Biscardi, however, believes digital asset managers are \u201cvery, very close to achieving institutional legitimacy.\u201d Bitcoin, he said, has already crossed that line, but altcoins are close. \u201cThe last piece is really the regulatory framework that lets them do it safely.\u201d<\/p>\n

For chief investment officers, that issue dominates. \u201cThe regulatory hurdles are number one,\u201d Biscardi said. \u201cIt just always goes back to that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Large allocators, he noted, are fiduciaries. \u201cIt’s not their money, they\u2019re fiduciaries for other people’s money, and it might be a super interesting category, but they’re just not going to allocate there until they can tell their board that they\u2019re doing it in a responsible, safe way.\u201d<\/p>\n

The tone of the debate has also changed. In 2022, some investors still questioned whether crypto was real or a Ponzi scheme. \u201cThat I don\u2019t hear any of that anymore,\u201d Biscardi said.<\/p>\n

In fact, some traditionally conservative pools of capital, for example, have stepped in. Endowments, which tend to focus on long-term stability and avoid sharp swings in new asset classes, have begun allocating to bitcoin and ether exchange-traded funds. The idea is not to overhaul portfolios but to add measured exposure that could lift returns<\/a> in years when crypto markets perform well, especially as many investors expect equities to deliver more muted gains than in the past decade.<\/p>\n

Still a risk asset<\/h2>\n

Nevertheless, allocators treat bitcoin \u201cmuch more as a risk asset\u201d than a store of value. \u201cBitcoin just hasn\u2019t behaved that way,\u201d he said, pointing to its correlation with equities rather than gold during market stress.<\/p>\n

Similarly, direct token buying remains rare among institutions. Instead, he hears more about ETFs and fund structures. Limited partners rely on general partners to choose specific coins. \u201cThe LPs who get bought into the space are really looking to the GPs to make those decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n

What\u2019s not rare is crypto companies investing in spreading awareness of their products and services. According to Biscardi, sponsorship numbers saw a substantial uptick at this year\u2019s event, with companies like BitGo (BTGO), Galaxy Digital (GLXY), Ripple and Blockstream all holding top-tier sponsor status.<\/p>\n

Read more: Bitcoin is stuck in a rut but JPMorgan says new legislation could be the ultimate spark<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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