CoinShares survey: Bitcoin tops fund managers' growth outlook as diversification leads
In brief
- CoinShares polled 28 investors overseeing roughly $642 billion in assets.
- Average digital asset allocation rose to 1.3% from 1.2% in July 2026.
- Bitcoin ranked first for growth expectations; Ethereum and Solana sentiment improved slightly.
- Diversification was the top investment rationale at 40%; speculation fell below 9%.
- Hyperliquid, SUI, Uniswap, NEAR, Aave and Chainlink drew increased respondent interest.
Diversification, not speculation
Diversification was the main reason respondents gave for investing in digital assets (cited by 40% of them), according to CoinShares' survey as reported by Crypto Briefing. CoinShares said the shift was especially visible among family offices and individual investors.
Speculation barely registered.
Speculative motives fell below 9% and ranked fifth among the reasons managers gave. The survey attributes the small rise in average allocation to that diversification focus, not to speculative appetite. It's still a modest number. Crypto Briefing's own read is that a 1.3% average means most of these portfolios remain in traditional assets.
Bitcoin and Ethereum still dominate positioning
Bitcoin and Ethereum together accounted for 47% of portfolio positioning responses. Bitcoin came out on top for growth expectations, while sentiment toward Ethereum and Solana improved slightly compared with earlier editions of the survey.
So where did interest move? Respondents pulled back from multi-asset strategies and from some older altcoins, and the survey flagged Hyperliquid, SUI, Uniswap, NEAR, Aave and Chainlink as tokens drawing increased interest among those polled. That's a mix of defi protocols (Uniswap for trading, Aave for lending), Chainlink, which supplies outside data to blockchains, and NEAR and SUI, which are general-purpose networks. These are respondents' preferences, not a price outlook.
A small sample in a long-running series
The pool is small. Twenty-eight respondents, however large their combined books, don't represent the institutional market as a whole, and the findings shouldn't be read that way.
CoinShares has run the survey quarterly since 2021 to track how institutional attitudes toward digital assets evolve. This edition's move from 1.2% to 1.3% is the latest data point in that series, and it's one that CoinShares ties to portfolio construction rather than a bet on price.
Frequently asked questions
Why are fund managers investing in digital assets, according to the CoinShares survey?
Diversification was the primary reason, cited by 40% of respondents, and CoinShares said this was especially visible among family offices and individual investors. Speculative motives fell below 9% and ranked fifth. The survey attributed the rise in average allocation to 1.3% to that diversification focus.
Which tokens drew more interest in CoinShares' October 2026 survey?
The survey flagged Hyperliquid, SUI, Uniswap, NEAR, Aave and Chainlink as tokens drawing increased interest among respondents. Bitcoin ranked first for growth expectations, and sentiment toward Ethereum and Solana improved slightly. Respondents pulled back from multi-asset strategies and some older altcoins.
How many investors did the CoinShares survey poll?
The October 2026 Digital Asset Fund Manager Survey polled 28 investors who together oversaw approximately $642 billion in assets under management. CoinShares has run the survey quarterly since 2021 to track how institutional attitudes toward digital assets evolve.
