Steven Fulop, the mayor of Jersey City since 2013, announced plans to invest part of the city’s pension fund in crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs). In a post on X dated July 25, Mayor Fulop revealed that the Jersey City pension fund is updating its paperwork with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to include an investment in Bitcoin ETFs.
Though Mayor Fulop didn’t specify the exact percentage of the pension fund to be invested in crypto, he suggested it would be around 2%, similar to the allocation by the Wisconsin Pension Fund. This move aligns with his long-held belief in the potential of blockchain technology. “I’ve been a long-time believer in crypto, despite its ups and downs. Broadly, I believe blockchain is among the most important technological innovations since the internet,” Fulop stated.
In May, the State of Wisconsin Investment Board disclosed its exposure to spot Bitcoin ETFs issued by Grayscale and BlackRock. These investments amounted to $164 million, a small portion of the board’s total $156 billion in assets.
Limited Adoption Among Public Funds
The SEC approved the trading of spot Bitcoin ETFs on US exchanges in January. However, only a few public pension funds, including those from Wisconsin and Jersey City, are considering crypto ETFs. Mayor Fulop did not mention any plans to invest in spot Ether ETFs, which began trading in the US on July 23.
Major financial institutions like Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase have reported minimal investments in spot Bitcoin ETFs, with combined holdings of less than $1 million—an insignificant fraction of their vast asset portfolios.
