US investment firm BlackRock CEO Larry Fink highlighted the potential of digital assets and tokenization for the asset management industry in his annual letter from the president to the company.
The letter was published on March 15 and addressed various topics of interest to the firm in the last year, including digital assets. Fink highlighted the growing and sustained interest in this type of asset, despite the FTX catastrophe.
In his opinion, beyond the hype, “interesting developments” are taking place in this area. He especially highlighted the “spectacular advances” in digital payment solutions that contribute to financial inclusion in many emerging markets like IndiaBrazil and Africa.
However, according to Fink, developing markets are not keeping pace with innovation:
“In contrast, many developed markets, including the US, are lagging behind on innovation, making the cost of payments much higher.”
BlackRock currently manages some $8 trillion in assets and is one of the largest asset managers in the world. Fink said the asset management industry could have some “exciting applications” of the technology behind these digital asset innovations.
Specifically, he praised asset class tokenization with its potential to “drive efficiency in capital markets, shorten value chains, and improve cost and access for investors.”
His statement ended without leaving aside the risks and the need for regulation of the crypto space, but noting that the company will continue to explore digital assets in the future.
It is not the first time that Fink has commented on decentralized finance. After the fall of FTX, commented that the FTX token caused the exchange to crash because it goes against “the whole foundation of what cryptocurrencies are.”
However, in the same conversation, he openly called the underlying technology of cryptocurrencies and the revolution caused by the blockchain revolutionary.
Already in September 2022, BlackRock launched a new ETF which invests in 35 blockchain-related companies.
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