By Samuel Indyk
Investing.com – In vogue fund manager Cathie Wood bought almost $246 million worth of Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) shares yesterday, the day the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the US went public.
Three of Wood’s funds bought shares in Coinbase; the ARK Innovation ETF (NYSE:ARKK), ARK Fintech Innovation ETF (NYSE:ARKF) and ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (NYSE:ARKW). In total, the funds bought almost 750,000 shares, equating to just shy of $250mln.
Cathie Wood
Cathie Wood has long been a supporter of cryptocurrencies and has suggested that Bitcoin could continue its march higher over the coming years as institutional allocations create a surge in demand for cryptocurrencies.
“We are now moving into what I believe will be prime time,” Wood said last month. “Helping it along is the demand from institutional investors.”
Coinbase listing
On its first day of trading, Coinbase jumped as much as 70% before closing higher by 31% at $328.28. At 10:15BST, shares are trading higher in pre-market by 11%.
Tesla
As ARK Invest purchased shares in Coinbase on its first day, Wood’s funds were also actively selling shares in electric vehicle maker Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA). On Wednesday, Wood sold $178mln worth of shares as the share price fell 4%.
Wood has long been a supporter of electric vehicles and in particular Tesla. The gargantuan surge in Tesla’s share price in 2020 helped Wood gain fame (and fortune) as her funds were amongst some of the best performing last year, given the electric vehicle maker is the largest holding in the flagship ARK Innovation ETF.