Stock-still-income director PIMCO is planning to increment its exposure to digital currencies such as Bitcoin (BTC) later on dabbling in the asset grade through crypto-linked securities, offering the latest evidence that major institutions are starting to embrace the emerging asset class.

In an interview with CNBC on Wednesday, chief investment officer Daniel Ivascyn confirmed that PIMCO already has exposure to "crypto-linked securities" through diverse hedge fund portfolios. He said the firm plans to gradually increase its exposure to the nugget class as part of its "trend-following strategies or quant-oriented strategies." He further explained:

"This will be a gradual process where nosotros spent a lot of time on the internal diligence side speaking to investors. And we'll have baby steps in an surface area that'southward chop-chop growing."

Founded in 1971, PIMCO is 1 of the world's largest nugget managers focused on active fixed-income securities. The business firm's assets nether management totaled $2.2 trillion as of Dec. 31, 2022.

The news dropped on Midweek as Bitcoin shattered all-fourth dimension highs above $67,000 and Ether (ETH) eclipsed $iv,100 for the outset time since May. In the process, the total cryptocurrency marketplace capitalization reached a new record high above $2.63 trillion, according to Cointelegraph Markets Pro.

Related: Bitcoin briefly flippens Swiss franc after rally to new ATH

Institutions have been piling into crypto investments for much of 2022, reflecting the growing mainstream acceptance of digital avails. A September survey from European investment manager Nickel Digital Asset Management revealed that nearly ii-thirds, or 62%, of global institutional investors with nada exposure to crypto planned to make their start investments within 12 months. Meanwhile, institutional capital was the major driving force behind Asia'southward 706% surge in crypto transactions over the by yr, according to data from Chainalysis.