Quick Take

• WisdomTree reports UK institutional investors representing retail money are set to invest in crypto ETPs following FCA approval.
• WisdomTree’s Digital Assets Research Director, Dovile Silenskyte, anticipates investment decisions will occur “within a matter of weeks” once the FCA gives the green light.
• While a U.S.-based XRP ETF application has been submitted, Silenskyte predicts most retail allocations via UK institutional channels will focus on Bitcoin products, with smaller allocations to Ethereum or multi-asset crypto baskets.

Detailed Report

Asset manager WisdomTree, citing Director of Digital Assets Research Dovile Silenskyte’s comments from DigiAssets 2025, stated UK institutional investors managing funds for retail clients are actively preparing for crypto investment.

Speaking at the aforementioned conference, Silenskyte noted extensive preparation by institutional investors seeking access to crypto ETPs, contingent on the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) review.

“If it does allow [retail access to crypto ETPs], then institutional investors who manage money on behalf of retail will move within a matter of weeks,” Silenskyte was quoted as saying.

Recent regulatory shift: WisdomTree obtained FCA approval last month to list its Physical Bitcoin and Physical Ethereum ETPs on the London Stock Exchange for professional investor access, signaling a reversal from previous prohibitions on crypto derivatives.

Investment Priorities

Silenskyte highlighted Bitcoin as the preferred choice, citing its historical performance: the best performing asset for eight of the last eleven years, despite being the worst performer for the last three years. Crucially, she emphasized Bitcoin’s lack of correlation with traditional assets, a significant diversification benefit.

“With correlations around or below 20%, adding this volatile but uncorrelated asset… improves portfolio risk/return metrics,” she explained.

The Altcoin Allocation

Despite WisdomTree filing for a U.S. XRP ETF, Silenskyte forecasts a clear allocation hierarchy in the UK retail market via institutional investors: approximately 80% towards Bitcoin products, 10% towards Ethereum, and the remaining 10% split among various altcoin basket products.

“For most investors, Bitcoin is what they will allocate; Bitcoin is what they will have in their multi-asset portfolios,” Silenskyte stated.

For investors lacking direct Bitcoin exposure or deep crypto-knowledge, Silenskyte predicts multi-asset crypto baskets will be the preferred vehicle.

Addressing the challenge of individual coin selection, she commented: “For most of them, selecting an individual token to put a lot of money in is an impossible task… For most of them, going for the crypto basket is what they will do.”