Samir Kerbage, Chief Investment Officer for Hashdex Asset Management, joined Julie Cooling, Founder and CEO of RIA Channel, to discuss the design of an investible index for the crypto industry.
Hashdex is a $2 billion crypto-focused asset manager created to bring crypto as an asset class to traditional investors. Historically, Hashdex has historically worked outside of the US, but is now expanding in the US as regulations regarding crypto asset management have become clearer.
The firm recently launched its flagship product in the US, the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index ETF (NCIQ). Hashdex and Nasdaq designed the index as an investible benchmark for the crypto industry. As of January 2026, the index had seven positions, with each crypto asset evaluated for custody, liquidity, and regulatory compliance. Each quarter, Nasdaq will evaluate which crypto assets qualify for inclusion in the index. The market capitalization-weighted index is designed to grow with the crypto market and allows assets to be added or removed over time. Investors can view the index as a pure beta exposure to assets that represent the underlying markets.
Advisors investing in crypto assets typically allocate 3% to 5% of total assets as holdings in the alternative investment bucket. Kerbage notes that crypto is an interesting and diversifying new asset class with high volatility, strong historical returns, and relatively low correlation to other assets in the portfolio.
WEBCAST – Crypto’s Outlook in 2026: The Catalysts Driving the Investment Case for Digital Assets
Digital assets had an eventful 2025 that included new all-time highs but also significant volatility. What does this mean for investors in the new year?
Regulatory clarity, institutional adoption, and macroeconomic trends are helping support the case for broad exposure to the emerging crypto asset class. Bitcoin’s growth as a non-sovereign monetary asset, the rise of stablecoins as digital dollars, and the accelerating trend of tokenization are all pushing investors to take a closer look at how crypto can fit within portfolios.
But in the wake of these developments, how should investors evaluate an allocation to crypto?
Join Hashdex Asset Management for an overview of our 2026 Crypto Investment Outlook and the catalysts we believe will strengthen the investment case for digital assets this year. We’ll do a deep dive on how the Nasdaq Crypto Index™, the benchmark powering the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index ETF (NCIQ), can help advisors get their clients exposure to the broad opportunities within this asset class.
We’ll cover:
- How the institutional acceptance of crypto is improving its investment case
- The major themes supporting crypto’s performance this year
- The impact regulatory clarity is having on digital asset adoption
- How crypto can fit within modern portfolios
- How NCIQ offers institutional-grade access to the broader crypto market
Accepted for 1 CFP® / IWI / CFA CE Credit
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