One of the biggest asset managers in Brazil, Kinea, disclosed it made an exploratory investment in Ethereum. The announcement was made by Marco Aurélio Freire, manager of funds for Kinea, who stated the company had invested a small amount of its holdings in ethereum starting two months ago. Kinea, the investment arm of Banco Itau, has more than R$56 billion (about $10.2B) in assets under management.

Kinea Looks Into Crypto Investments

Kinea, one of the leading asset managers in Brazil, has made an exploratory investment in the cryptocurrency world. The company, which has a vast amount of assets under management, chose to invest in ethereum instead of in the most popular choice, bitcoin. Marco Aurélio Freire, manager of the funds of the company, declared to local media the investment was made two months ago. Freire did not disclose the amount of the investment but did say it was a small amount to test the market.

Freire believes in the role of cryptocurrencies as a necessary asset to diversify portfolios. He stated:

I see cryptocurrencies as a secular trend in which it is worth having an exposure.

This seems to align with his beliefs about the current situation in Brazil and the necessity of international diversification of investments. Crypto assets can support investors in diversifying their portfolios.

Ethereum vs. Bitcoin

For many, the election of Kinea could be strange in a world dominated by bitcoin investments at an institutional level. Freire justified this choice by stating that, while bitcoin was the kickstarter of the decentralized finance world, other currencies also have many interesting things to offer. Freire stressed:

People generally confuse cryptocurrencies with bitcoin, but there is much more to the cryptocurrency market than just bitcoin.

In this sense, Freire pointed to the recent success that NFTs (non-fungible tokens) have experienced, and how this success has reinvigorated the collectible and sports markets. Managers from Kinea had already declared that bitcoin, being the first cryptocurrency, had a relatively simple design. However, other cryptocurrencies came to refine the concept that bitcoin founded, addressing problems like scalability and environmental impact. Kinea managers stated:

We believe that more developed currencies and protocols should be more attractive to investors.

And in retrospect, Kinea’s investment has done pretty well. Two months ago, on August 18, the price of Ether was $3,184. Now, the crypto asset is worth $3,855 at the time of writing.

What do you think about Kinea’s ethereum investment? Tell us in the comments section below.