The Government Pension Investment Fund of Japan, the world's largest pension fund, is interested in learning more about Bitcoin as a potential diversification tool.
Japan's Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF), the world's largest pension fund, is examining Bitcoin as a potential diversification tool.
Today the GPIF officially announced the development of new long-term investment policies in response to "major changes in the economy and society and rapid technological progress".
In reaction to the new challenges, the GPIF is launching a five-year research plan to explore innovative methods of investment diversification, with a particular focus on sustainability and risk management.
As part of the plan, the GPIF requested data on various potential investment diversification tools, including information on assets the company considers "illiquid" and does not hold. Such assets include cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, precious metals such as gold and other assets, the announcement states.
GPIF's new announcement is a request for information and does not guarantee that the company will approach new assets such as Bitcoin in the future. Instead, the company will evaluate whether to conduct future research based on the data collected.
Cointelegraph has reached out to the GPIF for clarification on its potential entry into Bitcoin, but has not yet received a response at the time of publication.
Founded in 2006 by the Japanese government, GPIF primarily focuses on investing in grassroots infrastructure funds, which invest in assets essential to social and economic activities. The company currently diversifies investments into traditional assets such as domestic and foreign stocks and bonds, as well as alternative assets such as infrastructure and real estate.
In its 2022 annual report, GPIF highlighted diversification as the company's core investment strategy, stating that:
“Our primary investment strategy is diversification by asset class, region and time horizon. While market prices may fluctuate in the short term, GPIF will take full advantage of our long-term investment horizon to achieve investment returns in a more stable manner and efficient [...]"
GPIF's total assets under management stood at 225 trillion Japanese yen ($1.54 trillion) as of end-December 2023, making it the largest pension fund in the world.
Although the GPIF is only beginning to consider adding BTC to its portfolio, some global pension funds have already adopted Bitcoin-related assets. In November 2023, South Korea's National Pension Service announced the purchase of more than 280,000 shares of US company Coinbase.
