California's $500B pension fund holds $80M in Strategy shares for indirect Bitcoin exposure

Key Takeaways

• CalPERS holds about $80 million in Strategy shares to gain indirect exposure to Bitcoin.
• Strategy Inc. is a public company that holds Bitcoin as a main treasury asset, allowing its shareholders exposure to Bitcoin price movements.

California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), the largest public pension fund in the US with over $500 billion under management, acquired 448,157 Strategy shares worth approximately $80 million as of now during the third quarter.

The investment allows CalPERS to gain indirect exposure to Bitcoin through the Strategy’s publicly traded shares without directly managing digital assets. The approach has become increasingly attractive to institutional investors seeking cryptocurrency exposure.

CalPERS has ongoing board discussions about cryptocurrency investments, reflecting broader trends among public pension funds exploring digital assets. Strategy enables institutional investors to access Bitcoin while avoiding the complexities of direct digital asset management.

Public pension funds have increasingly invested in equities linked to Bitcoin as a way to gain exposure to the digital asset without direct ownership, with Strategy providing a key avenue for this indirect investment approach.