World's largest sovereign wealth fund indirectly holds $6 million worth of Bitcoin

The Norwegian Government Pension Fund , known as the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, now indirectly owns nearly 578 Bitcoins (BTC) — currently worth $6.2 million — and their investment company is no stranger to you. MicroStrategy , a US-based global business intelligence software provider, announced earlier this year that it would invest a large portion of its cash reserves in Bitcoin.

The Norwegian government 's stake in MicroStrategy was first discovered by Arcane Research , which said the government fund owned 1.51% of MicroStrategy as of Dec. 31, 2019. However, ownership is still smaller than other institutional investors, such as BlackRock and Vanguard , which own 15.24% and 11.72%, respectively.

Source: Arcane Research

MicroStrategy is well known in the cryptocurrency community after its first investment in Bitcoin in August, when the company purchased about $250 million of the cryptocurrency, calling it a more "reliable store of value" than cash. The company then followed up again in early September, when it said it had purchased an additional 16,796 Bitcoins for a total of $175 million.

While the Norwegian Government Pension Fund, which derives surplus income from investments in Norway’s lucrative oil and gas industry on behalf of the government, has inadvertently gained exposure to Bitcoin due to its largely index-based investment approach, some see the ensuing institutional awareness of Bitcoin as a step in the right direction for mainstream society.

“A $1 trillion Norwegian pension fund now owns 577 BTC. What happens when they enter this new world?” global macro investor and DTAP Capital co-founder Dan Tapiero commented on Twitter today, while also adding that while the fund’s exposure is “inconsequential” right now, it could “make the mainstream start thinking about it.”

The fund’s holdings represent approximately 1.4% of all publicly traded stocks in the world, leading Arcane Research to note that the fund could potentially acquire more Bitcoin through other investments as well.

With more than $1 trillion in total assets, the Norwegian Government Pension Fund is the world's largest sovereign wealth fund, followed by China Investment Corporation and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority .