Crypto asset specialist Aaro adds three senior execs

Aaro Capital announced the addition of three senior team members to its growing firm, which is focused on a fund of funds that invests in distributed ledger technology (DLT)/blockchain-related technologies and crypto assets.

Joining Aaro’s advisory board is the former global head of HSBC Alternatives Investment Group and CEO of HSBC Alternative Investments Ltd. Peter Rigg and Mattia Rattaggi, former head of regulatory affairs and governance reporting at UBS, co-founder of SEBA Bank and leading digital advisor at Crypto Valley.

Also joining Aaro is Jameel Tawasin as the firm’s global head of sales. Formerly he was CEO of New Dynamic Ltd. and prior to that managing director at Revere Capital Advisors.  

The trio joins at a time of some compelling investment opportunities at Aaro, according to officials.

“Investors are looking for alternatives that offer high return potential plus diversification benefits,” says Rigg. “Some of the most exciting prospects are in DLT/blockchain-related technologies and crypto assets. Aaro is well placed to exploit them.”

Rattaggi added, “Aaro’s institutional quality approach is well positioned to take advantage of this fast evolving and uncorrelated new asset class.”

Tawasin, meanwhile, compared the potential of the asset class to the early days in the hedge fund industry.

Aaro’s Chief Investment Officer Ankush Jain likened the opportunity to the early days of the world wide web.

“This is still a young industry whose development is comparable to the early years of the Internet and there will be some big winners,” Jain said. “Our aim is to identify and invest in these opportunities in a considered, prudent and risk-controlled manner. This is a remarkable opportunity for investors to participate in this exciting growth story.”

The firm launched in 2018 and its first fund was introduced on May 1, the Aaro DLT Multifund is an institutional quality fund of funds that aims to offer broad exposure to the long-term growth of DLT and crypto assets, while protecting investors from short-term volatility.

“Having investor our own money successfully in crypto assets, we also recognized the emerging opportunities in blockchain-related technologies,” said Aaro CEO Peter Habermacher. “Our research showed that the best way to capture these opportunities is through a professionally run fund of funds.”

Aaro identifies the funds, often with a fundamental focus, that are best placed to exploit the investment opportunities that will arise. The underlying investment strategies include fundamental long-short, market neutral, quantitative arbitrage and trend following.

“Financial institutions and corporations in many different industries, plus governments, are investing in this novel technology at an increasingly fast pace. In 2019, $13 billion was invested in Blockchain projects and this is just the beginning” says Johannes Gugl, a partner at Aaro Capital. “We believe that investment into DLT/blockchain technologies and applications will continue to grow rapidly.”

So far firms such as Brevan Hoard and Renaissance Technologies are entering the space, according to Aaro. Officials said more than 500 funds are already active in the space, and more than 160 funds with more than $50 million in AUM.