Asset Manager Ruffer Confirms $750 Million Bitcoin Investment as Hedge Against Fiat Currency Devaluation

Investment management firm Ruffer, with over $27 billion under management, has confirmed that its bitcoin investment now totals $750 million. A Ruffer spokesperson told news.Bitcoin.com that this was “primarily a protective” move for the firm’s portfolios, as the firm reduced its gold investment. Ruffer says that its bitcoin investment is an “insurance policy against the continuing devaluation of the world’s major currencies.”

Bitcoin Now 2.7% of Ruffer’s Total Portfolio

Asset management firm Ruffer Group started investing in bitcoin in November and the company’s bitcoin holdings are now worth about $750 million at the time of writing.

A Ruffer spokesperson explained to news.Bitcoin.com on Wednesday, “Ruffer portfolios aim to preserve capital and deliver good all-weather returns, and they now have an allocation to bitcoin to help us meet that objective.”

“In November, Ruffer gained exposure to bitcoin via a specialist third-party manager. This was primarily a protective move for portfolios. It diversifies Ruffer portfolios’ investments in gold and inflation-linked bonds, and it acts as a hedge to some of the risks that we see in a fragile monetary system and distorted financial markets,” the spokesperson added, elaborating:

Ruffer’s exposure to bitcoin currently totals around £550m, equivalent to around 2.7% of the firm’s assets under management.

The explanation came as the price of bitcoin surpassed the $20,000 mark, setting a new all-time high. A BTC position of £550 million ($750 million) at the price when the explanation was sent would mean the firm is holding about 37,500 BTC, which is roughly 2.7% of its total asset under management (AUM). According to its website, Ruffer’s total AUM was about £20.3 billion ($27.4 billion) as of Nov. 30.

Ruffer first informed its shareholders that it had invested in bitcoin on Tuesday. “We wanted to give shareholders a short update on performance this year and to let you know about a new allocation to the digital currency bitcoin,” the firm’s press release states. Regarding its bitcoin investment, the company described that “This is primarily a defensive move, one made in November after reducing the company’s exposure to gold.” At the bitcoin price level on Tuesday, the firm wrote that the exposure to the cryptocurrency was “equivalent to around 2.5% of the portfolio.”

Founded in 1994, the U.K.-based asset manager has offices in London, Edinburgh, Paris, Hong Kong, and Guernsey. Ruffer Investment Company Ltd. is the firm’s investment company with shares listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE).

“We see this [bitcoin investment] as a small but potent insurance policy against the continuing devaluation of the world’s major currencies,” Ruffer concluded. “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.”