Crypto and blockchain: simple, diversified exposure to a fast-moving theme

Key points

• Provides exposure to the infrastructure, applications, and services behind the crypto economy
• Includes companies enabling digital payments, blockchain validation, and crypto adoption
• A transparent and diversified equity-based theme capturing blockchain’s expansion

From custody to coins, miners to payment rails, the crypto economy is scaling fast. And while headlines often focus on price swings in Bitcoin or Ethereum, investors can also gain exposure to the broader blockchain ecosystem through listed equities. These companies span infrastructure, applications, and services that power the digital asset economy. Our crypto and blockchain theme offers a practical, transparent way to invest in this space through a diversified basket of global stocks.

Investing in the digital asset value chain

The blockchain revolution is no longer theoretical. Tokenisation of assets, crypto-native payment networks, and Web3 applications are transforming financial infrastructure, digital identity, and even the way creators monetise content. But this isn’t just about holding coins. The value chain now includes:

• Infrastructure and enablers: chipmakers, cloud computing providers, digital asset custody solutions
• Networks and protocols: blockchain software developers and transaction validators
• Usage and monetisation: listed exchanges, payment apps, miners, and service platforms

This layered exposure is what gives the theme its breadth. It captures the expansion of blockchain-based systems across industries—not just within cryptocurrency speculation.

How the basket is built

Our crypto and blockchain theme is built using a rules-based approach. We screen globally for listed companies that derive significant business exposure from digital assets or enabling blockchain technologies. From that universe, we select stocks that span different parts of the value chain, ensuring no overconcentration in one sector or region.

The basket is rebalanced periodically to reflect market developments, remove outdated names, and include new players. Importantly, the selected equities are liquid and tradable, making the product suitable for both retail and professional investors.

Opportunities for forward-looking investors

The theme benefits from a combination of structural tailwinds and emerging adoption trends:

• Institutional adoption: large asset managers, banks, and fintechs are building infrastructure to support tokenised assets, boosting the value of enablers.
• Financial services disruption: from stablecoin-based payments to decentralised finance protocols, new models are reshaping traditional rails.
• New monetisation paths: platforms that enable creators to issue tokens, run DAOs, or build Web3 apps are rapidly attracting talent and capital.

Together, these trends support a growing and diversified set of revenue streams tied to the digital asset economy.

Risks and considerations

As with any thematic investment, there are meaningful risks to consider:

• Regulatory uncertainty: crypto regulation varies globally and could impact profitability or operational freedom of constituent companies.
• Volatility and correlation: crypto-linked stocks can experience sharp swings and may not always offer diversification during market stress.
• Technology execution: security breaches, protocol bugs, and implementation delays can materially affect sentiment and valuations.

Investors should assess this theme as a long-term satellite allocation with the potential for high dispersion among constituents.

Where it fits in a portfolio

The crypto and blockchain theme can be used as a tactical or strategic satellite allocation within a diversified portfolio. While it may not form part of a core holding, it offers asymmetric upside exposure to a growing segment of the economy. Given the volatility of some underlying assets, sizing should be conservative and aligned with one’s risk appetite and investment horizon.

What to watch

As the theme evolves, investors should watch:

• Global crypto policy shifts (e.g. EU MiCA, US stablecoin laws, Asian crypto hubs)
• Earnings from key listed enablers and payment providers
• Fund flows into major crypto ETFs and ETPs
• Technological milestones (e.g. Ethereum upgrades, scaling solutions, L2 adoption)
• On-chain activity vs market cap of listed proxies

These drivers can significantly influence sentiment, revenue expectations, and capital flows across the basket.

Inside the basket

The current basket includes a carefully selected group of companies with direct or enabling exposure to the digital asset economy:

• Visa Inc. – a global leader in payments, actively integrating crypto settlement capabilities into its network.
• Tesla Inc. – among the first major corporations to invest in Bitcoin and experiment with crypto-based payments.
• Strategy Inc. – a key player in business intelligence and enterprise Bitcoin adoption.
• Riot Platforms Inc. – a vertically integrated Bitcoin mining company operating large-scale facilities in the US.
• PayPal Holdings Inc. – enables crypto buying, selling, and checkout for millions of users worldwide.
• NVIDIA Corp. – supplies high-performance GPUs used in blockchain validation and crypto mining operations.
• MARA Holdings Inc. – operates one of the largest Bitcoin mining fleets in North America.
• Coinbase Global Inc. – one of the world’s most recognised cryptocurrency exchanges and custody providers.
• Circle Internet Group Inc. – the issuer of USD Coin (USDC), a leading regulated stablecoin used in digital payments.
• Block Inc. – the fintech firm behind Cash App and other crypto-access services for retail users.

This curated selection provides exposure to both infrastructure and application layers of the blockchain ecosystem.

Methodology and transparency

We use a publicly available methodology to construct the theme basket. Liquidity, relevance, and diversification are central to our selection rules. The list of constituents is published and reviewed on a regular basis to keep pace with sector developments. Investors can view the latest holdings and weightings directly on the platform.

Conclusion

The crypto and blockchain theme offers an intuitive and diversified way to gain equity exposure to a complex, fast-moving space. By investing in listed companies across the ecosystem—rather than trading individual coins—investors can participate in the blockchain transformation with transparency and ease. As adoption grows and the value chain matures, this theme may offer both growth potential and valuable diversification.