Beyond Bitcoin: Decrypting Digital-Asset Investment in Private Markets
Private-capital investment in digital assets has widened far beyond the scope of cryptocurrencies. Using MSCI’s digital-asset classification system, we can better understand where institutional capital has been flowing.1
Since 2021, nearly half (47%) of digital-asset holdings in private-capital funds by count have been concentrated in the engines of the digital economy — digital-asset applications that power decentralized finance (DeFi) and other on-chain services. Another 38% was in blockchain infrastructure, including smart-contract platforms like Ethereum and related utilities, while traditional digital currencies like Bitcoin have claimed only a sliver of allocations. Weighting by dollars invested rather than deal count shows digital-asset applications capturing a far smaller share.
Not just a surge in activity
Pooled valuations — reflecting the combination of net inflows and valuation write-ups — have reflected investor enthusiasm in the space. Blockchain infrastructure assets surged 22-fold (from USD 700 million in Q4 2020 to USD 15.4 billion by Q4 2024), while application tokens powering DeFi and other services notched around 400% growth to USD 3.7 billion. Traditional digital currencies, meanwhile, climbed 140% to USD 4.2 billion.
These trends underscore the ongoing evolution of the digital-asset investment market. While cryptocurrencies provided the initial framework, attention from private-capital investors has increasingly shifted toward the broader infrastructure and applications that are shaping decentralized technologies.
Data as of Q4 2024. Investment holdings count (n = 960). Source: MSCI Private Capital Universe
Data as of Q4 2024. Source: MSCI Private Capital Universe
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Digital Assets Solutions
Our Digital Assets Indexes and datonomy™ classification system are designed to help institutional investors identify and measure disruptive long-term trends.
1 The datonomyTM framework for classifying digital assets was developed by MSCI, Goldman Sachs and Coin Metrics.
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