ARK Invest, the pro-Bitcoin investment firm led by Cathie Wood, has sold a portion of its COIN holdings – a NASDAQ-traded stock of Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange.
Ark Invest Sells Coinbase Shares
On July 11, Bloomberg data showed that ARK Invest sold 135,152 COIN, equivalent to $12 million, out of their $1 billion COIN holdings, from ARK Innovation ETF. Notably, Ark Invest is liquidating a portion of its $1 billion COIN haul when share prices are rising, surging briefly to $90 on July 11.
The Coinbase stock plunged by over 80% in 2022 after trading to as high as $430 in the last bull cycle of 2021 when crypto prices and stocks of crypto-related firms soared as valuations broke key resistance levels.
Through the dump of crypto prices in 2022 and the stagnation in the first half of 2023, Ark Invest has been accumulating COIN in several instances. On one occasion on June 6, 2023, Ark Invest bought $17 million worth of COIN, cementing its position as the fourth-largest holder of the stock.
Despite the ongoing securities violation lawsuit against Coinbase filed by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the exchange’s stock has been firm. The regulator claims the exchange has been facilitating the trading of crypto asset securities and this lawsuit significantly impacted Coinbase’s share prices.
For instance, following news of the SEC lawsuit, COIN stock prices flash-crashed by over 15%. However, prices have since recovered from June 2023 lows, rising over 90% partly because of improving crypto sentiment, rising Bitcoin prices, and Coinbase coming forward saying they will defend themselves.
Public Companies Accumulating Bitcoin
The recent expansion of Bitcoin and crypto prices in the second half of June, indirectly lifting COIN prices, was triggered by BlackRock and some of the leading Wall Street players’ decision to file for a Bitcoin Spot exchange-traded fund (ETF). This decision buoyed Bitcoin prices, considering the impact any approval of an ETF would have on its broader markets.
Despite the SEC pouring cold water on the prospects of approving a Bitcoin Spot ETF, MicroStrategy, a business intelligence firm, continues to accumulate more coins.
As of July 12, MicroStrategy owns over 152,000 BTC, equivalent to 0.725% of the circulating supply, making it the largest public company to own BTC. Other notable public companies holding Bitcoin include Coinbase with 9,000 BTC, Tesla with 10,725 BTC, and Block with 8,027 BTC.
Recent news also reveals that the correlation between Bitcoin and NASDAQ Composite Index, comprising tech stocks like Tesla and Coinbase, is at the lowest point in two years.
Feature image from Canva, chart from TradingView
