Goldman Sachs Buys Innovator, Adds Bitcoin-Linked ETF To Portfolio

Goldman Sachs has agreed to acquire Innovator Capital Management for roughly $2 billion, bringing the issuer of defined-outcome exchange-traded funds (ETFs), including a Bitcoin structured fund, under its asset management umbrella.

The transaction, slated to close in the second quarter of 2026, will bring about $28 billion in additional assets under supervision to Goldman Sachs’ Asset Management, which reported $3.45 trillion AUS at the end of the third quarter.

Goldman said the purchase will broaden its plans for active and defined-outcome ETFs, a fund that uses options to limit losses and set how much of an asset’s gains investors can capture over a fixed period.

Launched in February, Innovator’s QBF ETF uses FLEX options referencing Bitcoin ETFs or the Cboe Bitcoin US ETF Index to mirror part of Bitcoin’s gains while capping quarterly losses at 20%. 

Its current 71% participation rate means the fund is designed to capture 71% of any positive Bitcoin (BTC) price move over that period. As of Friday, Innovator reported that QBF held approximately $19.3 million in market value.

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Goldman Sachs reversal on crypto

After dismissing cryptocurrencies as unsuitable for client portfolios in 2020, Goldman Sachs has become increasingly bullish on crypto and blockchain technology.

From 2020 to 2024, the US investment bank took part in 18 investments in blockchain companies, placing it among the most active global backers of early-stage companies in the sector.

In the second quarter of  2024, it bought approximately $419 million worth of Bitcoin ETF shares, according to CoinShares’ analysis of quarterly 13F filings.

In the last quarter of 2024, SEC filings showed Goldman bought nearly $1.28 billion of iShares Bitcoin Trust and $288 million of Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund. The bank also boosted its Ethereum ETF exposure that quarter to $476 million through BlackRock’s and Fidelity’s Ether (ETH) products.

The bank has reportedly been working on creating a new entity designed to issue and trade tokenized financial instruments.

In July, Cointelegraph reported that Goldman Sachs was preparing to let institutional clients access tokenized money market funds with 24/7 settlement and blockchain-based ownership tracking.

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