Wealth managers are increasingly confident that cryptocurrency as an asset class will deliver strong risk-adjusted returns, according to global research from Nickel Digital Asset Management.
The study, carried out amongst institutional investors and wealth managers, found 67% rate crypto among their top five asset classes offering the biggest opportunities for risk-adjusted returns over the next five years.
Crypto came ahead of private equity (64%), with both asset classes well ahead of US equities chosen by 50% and European equities selected by 44%. Just over a quarter (35%) chose commodities.
Despite volatile markets since the start of 2026, Nickel said sentiment overall remains unchanged as research carried out in January showed 65% chose crypto and 61% private equity.
More than a third (36%) expect pension funds to significantly increase investment into digital assets in the next two years, while 33% expect wealth managers to do the same. Around 32% also expect sovereign wealth funds to significantly increase investment with 31% and 30% predicting the same for family offices and hedge funds respectively.
Anatoly Crachilov, CEO of Nickel Digital, said: “The research underlines how digital assets are becoming an integral part of institutional portfolio allocations. The long-term confidence in the asset class’s ability to deliver long-term, superior risk-adjusted returns compared with other major asset classes highlights how the focus on digital assets has moved towards strategic allocations.”
Main image: shubham-dhage-1i0VtkVQk_Q-unsplash
