Arbor Digital and Blockchange Partner on Digital Asset SMA for Registered Investment Advisors

SAN FRANCISCO and ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Feb. 2, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Blockchange Inc, the digital asset investing platform for professional wealth managers, and Arbor Digital, an SMA manager for RIAs on their journey to digital assets, today announced a new Separately Managed Account (SMA) option for digital assets. The True Digital Asset SMA™ is the first of its kind, offering a variety of actively managed strategies and a broad selection of asset choices that can be tailored to the growth and risk appetites of different classes of investors.

Arbor Digital manages the SMA, leveraging Blockchange's BITRIA Digital Turnkey Asset Management Platform to onboard clients and manage portfolio allocations, with all assets custodied by Gemini Trust Co. The institutional-grade solution enables RIAs to outsource the management of their client's digital portfolios to Arbor Digital, who have specific expertise in the asset class.

"Vehicles like the Arbor True Digital Asset SMA simplify the journey for RIAs who want to engage with digital assets," said Ric Edelman, Founder of the RIA Digital Assets Council and one of the nation's most influential financial advisors. "Advisors need solutions like this that make it easy to add digital assets to client portfolios."

The Simplicity of a Trust or Fund with the Benefits of Full Asset Ownership

Financial advisors who want to expose their clients to digital assets today have several options. The simplest entry points are digital trusts and funds such as the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) or the Bitwise 10 Index Fund. However, while being easy to use, digital trusts can expose investors to premium risk (a divergence between the market price of shares of the trust and the value of the digital assets being held) and are frequently limited to a single asset. Funds tend to have higher fees, lockup periods, and lack the ability to customize portfolios based on individual investor goals and risk/reward profiles.

At the other end of the spectrum are Digital Turnkey Asset Management Platforms (DTAMPs) that enable advisors to actively manage portfolios with a wide selection of digital assets, without the downside of high fees or premium risk. With ownership of the underlying assets, investors also enjoy tax advantages and other benefits such as staking and lending and the ability to manage digital IRAs. Effective use of a DTAMP however requires that the advisor has experience with digital assets, and there is also effort required to onboard clients to the platform.

The Arbor True Digital Asset SMA represents a "sweet spot" solution for RIAs, delivering the benefits of a DTAMP without the need for expertise in digital assets or the responsibility for onboarding clients. These functions are outsourced to Arbor Digital who manage all aspects of the client's digital asset journey. It marries the simplicity of a trust or fund with all the benefits of owning the underlying assets through a DTAMP.

"Matt Kolesky and his team bring 20 years of real-world RIA experience together with a solid history in digital asset investing and we're proud to have them as our first SMA partner," said Blockchange CEO Dan Eyre. "The launch of Arbor's True Digital Asset SMA marks the emergence of the first SMA that creates value for investors across the entire asset class, rather than being limited to just Bitcoin or Ethereum. This space is growing fast and it's critical for firms to select partners that are equipped to meet future needs, rather than just the needs of the moment. Our BITRIA platform enables Arbor to offer a really broad selection of asset choices and to easily scale to onboard and manage a large number of clients from multiple firms."

"As an investment advisor representative, I've wanted to share the democratizing experience of digital assets, so I'm incredibly grateful to be on this journey with Blockchange as we revolutionize our industry," said Matt Kolesky, President and Chief Compliance Officer of Arbor Capital. "We began crafting Arbor's digital asset investment policy in 2018 based upon my seven-year personal digital asset journey, and the firm entered into the asset class for clients in March of 2019. As a registered investment advisor, Arbor Digital can now provide digital asset exposure to investors, ranging from Bitcoin and Ethereum allocations to a spectrum of DeFi and utility tokens."

Digital Asset Educational Opportunity
Investment advisors can learn more about the different options for engaging in digital assets, including the Arbor True Digital Asset SMA, at a webinar hosted by the RIA Digital Assets Council on February 10.

About Arbor Digital
Arbor Digital is an SMA manager for registered investment advisors on their journey to digital assets. Arbor Digital is a division of Arbor Capital, a financial services firm with over $250 AUM. Arbor Capital is based in Anchorage, Alaska and was founded in 1996. For inquiries about Arbor Digital, visit https://digital.arbor.capital or contact [email protected].

About Blockchange Inc.
Blockchange simplifies the path to digital asset investing for financial advisors. The company's Digital Asset SMA and Digital Turnkey Asset Management Platform solutions offer a range of options for advisors to offer their clients the advantages and flexibility of direct asset ownership, together with a broad selection of asset choices that can be tailored to the growth and risk appetites of different classes of investors. Blockchange was founded in 2017 and has its headquarters in San Francisco California. For more information or to request a demo, visit https://blockchange.ai or contact [email protected].

Media Contact for Arbor Digital
Matt Kolesky
President of Arbor Capital
[email protected]

Media Contact for Blockchange Inc.
Daniel Tardent
Head of Marketing
[email protected]

SOURCE Blockchange Inc.

Related Links

https://www.blockchange.ai

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