Despite the many criticisms of El Salvador and its exposure to bitcoin (BTC), other countries seem to have done the same in secret. This is what the magazine ensures Forbeswhich revealed over the weekend that the Kingdom of Bhutan has millions of dollars worth of cryptocurrencies through its Sovereign Investment Fund.
Investments found through the bankruptcy proceedings of Celsius and BlocFi
A small kingdom in Asia known for its quality of health, Bhutan has become a major tourist destination in recent years. It has a Sovereign Investment Fund, called Druk Holding & Investments, which manages a portfolio consisting mainly of local assets.
However, the latter has diversified its exposure to the market since 2022 by purchasing various cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin and ether (ETH). These crypto investments came to light after the bankruptcy of two crypto lending companies, namely BlockFi and Celsius.
In fact, BlockFi lawyers have filed a lawsuit against Druk in Bhutan’s capital, Thimphu, in which the fund is accused of failing to repay a $30 million USD Coin (USDC) loan. The crypto lending company claims that the fund was unable to repay its loan in full, and still owes it $820,000 despite liquidating its 1,888 bitcoin collateral.
Like BlockFi, Celsius has also embarked on recovery proceedings by claiming deposits made by the latter company from Druk Holding & Investments within 90 days of its bankruptcy. Bhutan’s investment fund withdrew more than $65 million and deposited nearly $18 million in cryptocurrencies between April and June 2022. according to Celsius.
Also read: Celsius is reportedly preparing a lawsuit against a creditor for leaking inside information!
Druk Holding & Investments maintains secrecy around its crypto investments
Contacted by Forbes to provide its version of the facts, the sovereign wealth fund was informed by its CEO, Ujjwal Deep Dahal, that the dispute with BlockFi has been resolved. “We have no comment as the issue with BlockFi has been resolved. We cannot comment due to confidentiality. “, he declared.
The Managing Director of the International Forum for Sovereign Wealth Funds, Duncan Bonfield explained that the crypto exposure of these funds is limited to accepting commitments in companies that own cryptocurrencies. “We have not seen any interest in cryptocurrencies as an asset class, and we do not believe any of our members have a cryptocurrency allocation in their portfolios. “, he declared.
Despite the secrecy of its sovereign investment fund, Bhutan has publicly displayed its interest in blockchain technology and its applications. In particular, it partnered in 2021 with the crypto fintech Ripple as part of the development of its own Central Bank digital currency.
