Michigan State Retirement Fund Invests in Bitcoin ETF

Another state retirement fund has revealed substantial shares in a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).

The State of Michigan Retirement System disclosed it owns 110,000 shares of ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF as of June 30, according to a Tuesday 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The Board’s shares in ARK 21 were valued at $6,597,800.

Bloomberg’s senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas confirmed the System’s purchase in ARKB, noting that its ETF ownership is a small percentage. “It’s a start,” he said, adding that the State Retirement Board of Michigan is the third pension entity to report owning spot bitcoin ETF shares.

Following the Michigan pension agency, the State of Wisconsin Investment Board and Jersey City also added spot bitcoin ETF shares to their pension fund investments. In May, the Wisconsin state agency reported ownership of 2,450,400 shares of BlackRock’s IBIT worth nearly $100 million, and 1,013,000 shares of Grayscale’s GBTC valued around $64 million at the end of March.

Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop noted that the city will invest a percentage of its pension fund into spot bitcoin ETFs. He predicts the investment process will conclude by the end of summer.

ARKB, like the 10 other spot bitcoin ETFs approved on January 10, provides investors exposure to bitcoin price movements without the need to own the asset itself. ARKB holds 6.22% of the total market share for spot bitcoin ETFs, managing $3.09 billion in assets under management.

The Block reached out to the Michigan State Treasurer for comment.