Up until recently, Mets owner and hedge fund manager, Steven A. Cohen, has been sceptical about cryptocurrencies. However, according to a Business Wire press release, the billionaire investor will now be investing in crypto trading firm Radkl.
Radkl is new to the scene and will use quantitative methods across cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, and plans to expand to decentralised finance or DeFi segment over time. Radkl is being launched by partners of New York-based GTS- a high-speed trading firm who are active in stocks and options.
The announcement states that Cohen will be the initial investor for Radkl but will not have involvement with the company’s day-to-day operations. The amount that Cohen has invested has not been disclosed. Cohen is investing in Radkl in a personal capacity and not through the hedge fund that he leads.
This investment is the latest sign that the billionaire is now ‘committed’ to cryptocurrencies after previously being unsure about making investments. Cohen has described himself as “fully converted” and explained that “there’s a need for an institutional player like Radkl that engages in large digital asset transactions.”
It is expected that Radkl will begin trading later this year and will be led by GTS partner, Ryan Sheftel. GTS is in the midst of acquiring a team of engineers, data-scientists and world-class technologists to implement quantitative investment strategies such as sophisticated, high-speed, computerised trading models.
Cohen’s recent interest in cryptocurrencies doesn’t stop with his Radkl investment, Recur– a start-up focused on NFTs- has recently announced that it has raised $50 million in a Series A funding round led by Digital. Digital is a metaverse investment platform backed by Cohen’s family office. It is expected that Cohen will also join the board of Recur.
Cohen’s hedge fund, Point72 Asset Management, saw huge losses earlier this year among the sharp uptick in shares of GameStop Corp and other Reddit favourite stocks. The billionaire’s move to crypto comes at a time when cryptocurrencies are dominating the market and have huge potential for gains.
Cohen joins a number of hedge fund billionaires, including Stanley Druckenmiller and Paul Tudor, who have recently made crypto investments. However, Cohen is the most notable hedge fund manager turned crypto investor. Cohen is considered to be the inspiration behind the character of hedge fund manager Bobby Axelrod in the TV show Billions.
It seems that the demand for cryptocurrencies will only grow, as leaders of several investment firms show their interest in the assets. Paul Tudor Jones II, the founder of Stamford based hedge fund Tudor Investment Corp, told CNBC in June, “ The only thing I know for certain, I want 5 per cent in Gold, 5 per cent in Bitcoin, 5 percent in cash, 5 per cent in commodities.”
