KPMG’s Canadian arm, the fourth-largest auditor in the world, has added Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) to its corporate treasury, joining the ranks of other big companies that have converted a portion of their fiat holdings into digital assets.
Cryptoassets are a maturing asset class, This investment reflects our belief that institutional adoption of cryptoassets and blockchain technology will continue to grow and become a regular part of the asset mix.
Benjie Thomas, KPMG’s Canadian managing partner for advisory services
The addition of Bitcoin and Ether to KPMG Canada’s balance sheet reflects the firm’s belief that cryptocurrencies are an asset class that is “maturing,” explains managing partner Benjie Thomas, told CNBC in an interview. In Canada, KPMG is following in the footsteps of hedge funds, family offices and pension funds by becoming involved in the cryptocurrency industry.
In response to the announcement, KPMG acquired Bitcoin and Ethereum on its balance sheet through Gemini, with the two companies exchanging a brief interaction through Twitter on Monday morning. According to a statement by the firm, they will also be adding carbon offsets in order to maintain a net-zero carbon transaction and fulfill their commitment to ESG.
A governance committee oversees the corporate treasury policy of the company, which is made up of members of several departments, including finance, risk management and tax. KPMG said that it had “conducted a rigorous risk assessment,” as well as evaluating tax implications, before making its decision to add digital assets to its portfolio.
The cryptoasset industry continues to grow and mature and it needs to be considered by financial services and institutional investors, We’ve invested in a strong cryptoassets practice and we will continue to enhance and build on our capabilities across Decentralized Finance (DeFi), Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) and the Metaverse, to name a few. We expect to see a lot of growth in these areas in the years to come.
Kareem Sadek, KPMG Canada’s Cryptoassets and blockchain services co-leader
In recent months, it has been noted that several major corporations have sought exposure to cryptocurrency in an effort to diversify their portfolios and hedge against inflation. MicroStrategy, a business intelligence firm that has adopted a full-on Bitcoin standard, converted all of its cash reserves to BTC and even raised debt to cover additional purchases, is easily the most famous example of this.
