CFO Of World’s Largest Hedge Fund Quits To Join Bitcoin Company

In early 2020, shortly after we correctly predicted that institutional buying of bitcoin would send the cryptocurrency soaring (and just before Elon Musk announced that Tesla had purchased $1.5 billion in bitcoin), we said that the next big catalyst for Bitcoin would be when Bridgewater, the world’s largest hedge fund, announces it had started purchasing bitcoin.

Next catalyst higher: Bridgewater starts buying bitcoin. https://t.co/adixQWnpMv

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 8, 2021

The reason for this was a dramatic reversal by the formerly Bridgewater founder (and one-time bitcoin skeptic) Ray Dalio who in late January said that “I and my colleagues at Bridgewater are intently focusing on alternative storehold of wealth assets and expect Bridgewater to soon offer an alt-cash fund and a storehold of wealth fund in order to better deal with the devaluation of money and credit that we consider to be a major risk and opportunity, and Bitcoin wont escape our scrutiny.”

Translated, we said, “this means that in the near future Bridgewater itself will be buying bitcoin.”

And as wait for the official announcement, moments ago we got the clearest hint of what is coming when Bitcoin services firm NYDIG “a leading provider of investment and technology solutions for Bitcoin” announced it had hired John Dalby, who until today was CFO of Bridgewater (and previously was CFO at D.E. Shaw Renewables and had spent more than two decades at UBS Group AG) as its own Chief Financial Officer.

“Every day, more industries come to understand Bitcoin’s potential and more clients seek ways to safely access it. Personally, I share NYDIG’s vision for Bitcoin’s ability to propel economic empowerment for all. I eagerly look forward to doing my part to help NYDIG deliver innovative Bitcoin solutions to institutions and individuals”, Dalby said in a statement.

According to NYDIG, the appointment of Dalby “comes during a period of rapid growth for NYDIG. The firm recently raised more than $300 million from a group of strategic partners including Stone Ridge Holdings Group, Morgan Stanley, New York Life, MassMutual, Liberty Mutual, Starr Companies, and FIS. The firm also recently announced the launch of a global Insurance Solutions practice led by former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of TransRe, Mike Sapnar, who will spearhead the creation of bitcoin-powered products and services for the global insurance industry.”

Dalby is hardly the first prominent CFO to embrace alt-currencies. In 2018, Alesia Haas left as CFO of Och-Ziff Capital or whatever it’s called today, to join Coinbase.

Earlier today we reported that Goldman had relaunched its crypto trading desk and now offers Bitcoin derivatives to Wall Street investors.