California Pension Fund Loaded Up on RIOT Shares During Bitcoin's Q4 Rally

The largest public pension in the U.S. bought more RIOT shares for the first time since 2017.

Feb 2, 2021 at 6:21 p.m. UTC

Updated Sep 14, 2021 at 11:05 a.m. UTC

California's $441 billion public pension fund increased its stake in bitcoin miner Riot Blockchain (RIOT) nearly sevenfold in last year's Q4 amid the meteoric run-up in the price of bitcoin.

California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) held 113,034 shares in RIOT worth over $1.9 million at the end of 2020, according to Tuesday filings. That's up from Q3 2020, when CalPERS' 16,907 RIOT shares were worth a comparatively minuscule $49,000.
The largest public pension fund in the U.S. had been holding firm on its nearly 17 thousand RIOT shares since acquiring them during the bull run in late 2017. That position seldom varied until now.
RIOT spiked 541% during Q4 2020. Meanwhile, bitcoin was up 174% for the quarter.
CalPERS board members included blockchain technologies as a future-forward investment opportunity during a public forum in 2016.

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