ARK Invest Boosts Crypto Stake as Cathie Wood Reiterates Long-Term Bullish View Despite Sector Pullback

Cathie Wood's ARK Invest boosted its stake in crypto stocks despite faltering confidence in the cryptocurrency industry. ARK Invest purchased shares of crypto exchange Coinbase (Nasdaq:COIN), USDC stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Group (NYSE:CRCL), and crypto exchange Bullish (NYSE:BLSH) in its latest trades disclosed late last week.

The ARK Innovation ETF and the ARK Fintech Innovation ETF collectively purchased 38,854 shares of Coinbase, valued at over $9 million (£6.5 million). ARK Invest also bought 129,446 shares of Circle Internet Group across the two ETFs for $9.2 million (£6.7 million), as well as 88,533 shares of Bullish. Wood's trades came as these stocks fell in recent trading, extending recent weakness in the sector.

Bitcoin is facing a slump this year, lagging the benchmark S&P 500 and Nasdaq indexes, as traders are seeking safe-haven assets like gold and silver to hedge geopolitical uncertainty. However, Wood is not giving up on the sector despite Bitcoin losing 16% of its value over the past year, arguing that the digital asset's long-term outlook remains intact as its role in global markets continues to evolve.

Factors Driving ARK's Crypto Investments

ARK Invest believes that crypto equities can offer leveraged exposure to broader adoption trends, especially when institutional participation expands. Crypto exchanges, stablecoin issuers, and even trading platforms generally benefit when volumes rebound, despite facing sharper declines during periods of market stress.

In its Big Ideas 2026 report, ARK Invest forecast that the crypto market could reach a market cap of $28 trillion (£20.4 trillion) by 2030, citing rising Bitcoin adoption and price appreciation.

Note that this forecast assumes a compound annual growth rate of 61% for the crypto market, with Bitcoin accounting for 70% of total value. Assuming a supply of about 20.5 million BTCs by 2030, ARK expects a price range from $950,000 (£694,811) to $1 million (£731,380) per token.

ARK Invest highlighted rising institutional participation as a key driver of the firm's guidance, adding that Bitcoin ETFs and corporate holders increased their share of total supply in 2025.

Wood Believes BTC Volatility Has Declined

In a recent ARK Invest video, Wood addressed concerns around BTC's consolidation and dynamic market behaviour. She said Bitcoin's volatility has dropped considerably compared with earlier cycles, reflecting its transition from a speculative asset to one increasingly held by institutions.

BTC volatility reached an all-time low in October 2024, after peaking earlier in the cycle. Wood said this shift altered how Bitcoin trades in the short term, but does not change its longer-term role as a store of value.

She added that ARK Invest has somewhat adjusted its Bitcoin framework, particularly around emerging-market payments. Wood explained that stablecoins are continuing to take on use cases, including remittances and day-to-day transactions, which ARK Invest once expected Bitcoin to fill.

'In terms of remittances and emerging market activity, we're seeing stablecoins usurp the role we thought Bitcoin would provide,' Wood said. However, she stressed that this evolution does not impact BTC's long-term positioning. Overall, Bitcoin's fixed supply and mathematically capped issuance continue to differentiate it from traditional assets, including precious metals like gold.

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