Goldman Sachs, one of the largest US investment banks, has made a full 180 on its stance on cryptocurrencies and is now actively promoting it on its main website.
The latest version of the homepage is dominated by a section on “digitization”, which directs visitors to a page with reports on cryptocurrencies, metaverse and other Web3 trends that it says are “reshaping economies”.
Even Goldman is not immune to Web3’s charms
Pushing a cryptocurrency agenda has now become almost ubiquitous in the world of traditional finance. Institutions left and right have added cryptocurrencies to their offerings and explored ways to enter the crypto market, even in times of the sharpest corrections.
Goldman Sachs, whose reluctance to jump on the crypto train was second only to JPMorgan, is one of those institutions.
Although the US investment bank has been offering cryptocurrency products for a while, it was only a few years ago that top management actively expressed disdain for the new asset class.
In 2020, the bank released a presentation on cryptocurrencies saying that Bitcoin is neither an asset class nor a suitable investment.
Less than a year later, the bank released a comprehensive report on the cryptocurrency market and began offering Bitcoin-backed trading products almost immediately after.
Earlier this week, it became the first US bank to conduct OTC crypto options trading by trading an undeliverable Bitcoin option with help from Galaxy Digital.
However, the aggressive focus on the topic of cryptocurrencies and digitization came as a surprise to the wider market, with many seeing it as an extremely positive sign for the industry.
Goldman Sachs on crypto
2017: 2022: pic.twitter.com/7Dy6Joh1lF
— Jay | OKX CEO (@Jay_OKX) March 24, 2022
Goldman’s “Insights” page features extensive reports on the topic of the metaverse and online gaming, promoting Web3 as the dominant narrative not only in the crypto market, but also in traditional finance.
Screengrab with Goldman Sachs homepage on March 24
We have yet to see if Goldman’s new website will have an impact on the crypto market. Outside of its historic OTC transaction earlier this week, the bank has remained silent about other crypto- and Bitcoin-related products it might offer. As the bank’s core business focuses on accredited investors and derivatives trading institutions, it could take months for the impact of its new Web3-first strategy to show results.
According to Mike Bucella, the general partner at Block Tower, just over half of Goldman Sachs’ asset managers and hedge fund clients had exposure to cryptocurrencies. About 60% expected to increase their crypto holdings in the next one to two years and 14% showed interest in DeFi tokens.
The bank’s aggressive move to Web3 could be the result of increased demand from its customers seeking exposure to the burgeoning Web3 market.
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