Goldman Sachs has agreed to acquire Innovator Capital Management for approximately $2 billion. This acquisition will bring Innovator, the issuer of defined-outcome exchange-traded funds (ETFs) including a Bitcoin structured fund, under the umbrella of Goldman Sachs’ asset management division.
The transaction is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2026. Upon closing, it will add around $28 billion in assets under supervision to Goldman Sachs’ Asset Management. At the end of the third quarter, Goldman Sachs’ Asset Management reported $3.45 trillion in assets under supervision.
Goldman Sachs stated that this purchase will enhance its offerings in active and defined-outcome ETFs. Defined-outcome ETFs are designed to use options to limit potential investor losses while also capping the amount of an asset's gains that investors can capture over a specific period.
Innovator’s QBF ETF, launched in February, utilizes FLEX options that reference Bitcoin ETFs or the Cboe Bitcoin US ETF Index. This structure aims to mirror a portion of Bitcoin's gains while capping quarterly losses at 20%.
The fund currently has a participation rate of 71%, meaning it is designed to capture 71% of any positive Bitcoin (BTC) price movement within a given quarter. As of Friday, Innovator reported that the QBF ETF held approximately $19.3 million in market value.
Goldman Sachs' Evolving Stance on Cryptocurrency
Initially dismissing cryptocurrencies as unsuitable for client portfolios in 2020, Goldman Sachs has since demonstrated an increasing interest and bullishness towards crypto and blockchain technology.
Between 2020 and 2024, the US investment bank participated in 18 investments in blockchain companies. This activity has positioned Goldman Sachs as one of the most active global backers of early-stage companies within the blockchain sector.
In the second quarter of 2024, Goldman Sachs purchased approximately $419 million worth of Bitcoin ETF shares, according to an analysis of quarterly 13F filings by CoinShares.
During the last quarter of 2024, SEC filings revealed that Goldman Sachs acquired nearly $1.28 billion of iShares Bitcoin Trust shares and $288 million of Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund. The bank also increased its Ethereum ETF holdings in that quarter to $476 million, investing in BlackRock’s and Fidelity’s Ether (ETH) products.
Reports indicate that Goldman Sachs has been developing a new entity intended to issue and trade tokenized financial instruments.
In July, it was reported that Goldman Sachs was preparing to offer institutional clients access to tokenized money market funds. These funds are designed to provide 24/7 settlement capabilities and blockchain-based ownership tracking.