Editor’s Note: As Bill has mentioned, cryptocurrencies like bitcoin are more of a speculation, not an investment. But with bitcoin returning more than 300% this year alone, big asset managers are starting to take notice.


VanEck is one of the biggest asset managers in the United States.

The firm opened in 1955. And in 1968, it launched the VanEck International Investors Gold Fund (INIVX), the first U.S. gold fund.

Today, VanEck’s exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have $30 billion in assets under management. That’s more than ETF issuers JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and Barclays.

The company offers more than 50 ETFs. And it manages assets for over 400 institutions–including banks, pension funds, and endowments.

Here’s the thing about VanEck…

It specializes in precious metals. Most of its assets are gold investments. And it runs some of the world’s largest gold funds.

But now the company is making the jump into bitcoin.

On August 11, VanEck filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the VanEck Vectors Bitcoin Strategy ETF.

The fund would initially invest in bitcoin futures contracts and trade on the Nasdaq.

It’s no surprise VanEck is launching a bitcoin ETF. The cryptocurrency has vastly outperformed gold this year (see chart below).

As you can see, bitcoin has crushed gold this year. Bitcoin is up 324% since January, while gold has gained only 10%.

Don’t get me wrong. I like gold. I own it and suggest that my subscribers have a portion of their assets in gold.

But the global gold market is already worth $7 trillion. With a market that size, it just can’t compete with the profit potential of bitcoin.

Bitcoin has a market cap of just $66 billion. It doesn’t have to displace gold to rise another 10 times from here.

It just needs to become an alternative “chaos hedge,” and we could see bitcoin at $40,000 per coin.

We’re already seeing bitcoin become a safe-haven asset in crisis-stricken countries like Venezuela, Greece, and Cyprus. People are turning to it to protect their wealth from inflationary government policies and capital controls.

The smart operators at VanEck understand the potential of bitcoin. Not only is it a great investment, but it’s also a safe haven like gold.

That’s why they are pushing ahead with their own ETF. Here’s what VanEck said about bitcoin:

VanEck believes that the technology underlying digital assets, known as distributed ledger technology [blockchain], has tremendous potential to revolutionize finance and trade. Digital assets are an investable asset class in their own right and continue to be integrated into the broader economy.

Don’t let all that high-minded talk fool you.

The folks at VanEck see the upside potential in bitcoin.

I’m certain we’ll see more traditional asset managers like VanEck eagerly lining up to launch bitcoin ETFs.

We don’t know whether the SEC will approve this ETF. But this is the latest evidence that bitcoin is becoming mainstream.

As more people adopt bitcoin, we could see a price of $5,000 this year.

We remain very bullish on bitcoin. You should own some today.

Regards,

Teeka “Big T” Tiwari

Editor, The Palm Beach Letter

P.S. Like I said, I believe bitcoin will continue to grow in value from here, but it’s not the only cryptocurrency that is seeing incredible returns right now. I’ve found three that have grown an average of 2,026%… including one I call the “next bitcoin.” There’s still a chance to punch your ticket to life-changing gains with the “next bitcoin” and these other coins. You can learn more about them right here.