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Crypto asset manager Grayscale is now managing more than $10 billion worth of assets across its funds.

The total assets under management (AUM) of Grayscale currently stands at around $10.4 billion. The firm’s bitcoin (BTC) product, Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), remains the most popular. It has more than 80% share of the total AUM at about $8.85 billion.

In terms of bitcoin units, GBTC holds a massive quantity of around 480,900 BTC, according to The Block Research. 

Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE) follows GBTC, having a total AUM of approximately $1.2 billion. Grayscale’s other crypto funds have a smaller AUM, in the range of $1.5 million to $145 million.

Grayscale was founded in 2013 and has grown in popularity, especially in recent months. Less than a year ago, in December 2019, the firm’s total AUM was just around $1 billion.

Grayscale’s funds allow investors to take indirect exposure to crypto assets, in the form of security, while avoiding the challenges of buying and storing them directly.

© 2020 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

As bitcoin raced towards highs rivaling levels from 2017 and early 2018, the market for futures and options tied to the digital currency also clocked in records, according to data compiled by The Block. 

At the time of writing, bitcoin was trading around the $17,500 price level after cresting $17,800 earlier in the day. The boost in the cryptocurrency’s price since the beginning of the month has swelled open interest across the bitcoin futures market with, aggregate OI hitting $6.29 billion on Monday.

CME Group saw open interest in its bitcoin futures product, which launched at the height of the 2017 bitcoin boom, hit $975.5 million on Monday — the highest level ever. 

To be sure, it should not come as a surprise that open interest has soared in line with bitcoin’s price, given the fact that the value of the contracts traded are directly tied to the price of the underlying commodity. 

The bitcoin options market has also clocked in new highs. Aggregate open interest across the bitcoin options markets hit $3.8 billion on Monday.

Deribit, which is the largest player in the bitcoin options market, saw open interest in its product clock in a new high with more than $3 billion in open interest, as of November 17. 

© 2020 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

President Donald Trump nominated Brian Brooks, who currently serves as the acting Comptroller of the Currency, to a full five-year term on Tuesday.

The nomination was included in a raft of nominations released by the White House. Brooks took over the Comptroller’s office in May after the departure of Joseph Otting. Otting first took office in November 2017.

To assume a five-year term, Brooks will have to receive approval in the U.S. Senate. Congress entered a lame-duck period following the presidential election earlier this month, and a new session of Congress begins on January 3.

Brooks, a former chief legal officer for Coinbase, has pursued a number of policy initiatives on the digital asset front since assuming office. Most notably, his office published guidance for national banks that allows them to hold custody of cryprocurrencies as well as funds for fiat-backed stablecoin issuers.

But Brooks’ work on digital issues has drawn some criticism. Earlier this month, a group of House Democrats issued a strongly-worded letter to Brooks in which they lambasted him and his office for not focusing more on issues stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. 

© 2020 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

Quick Take

• Uniswap’s liquidity mining program came to an end Monday night.
• Community members are scrambling to come up with a new proposal, highlighting the challenges of decentralized governance.

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