Bankinter has become the first Spanish bank to launch an investment fund focused on the industry that will develop the metaverse

Bankinter is bringing the metaverse closer to investors and has become the first Spanish bank to launch a fund focused on this industry, which experts estimate will unleash a bigger revolution than the one already brought about by the Internet more than 30 years ago. To do this, the bank has issued a mandate to the renowned French manager Edmond de Rothschild AM, to design and manage the new investment fund that is launched exclusively for the bank's customers.

The economic flow that Edmond de Rothschild AM estimates, based on reports on the metaverse industry such as the ReportLinker report, is that it will move a global turnover of $759 bn in 2026, compared to $107 bn registered in 2020. Some experts estimate that the size of this new market will grow by 867% in the period 2021-2024.

The metaverse combines virtual and augmented reality with real experience and will change the way we consume in many sectors. Now the growth stage begins, which is why experts recommend being one step ahead to achieve the potential return from sector-specific securities that will be influential in the metaverse.

The fund focusses on investing in companies, looking beyond the short-term and across different sectors, not just technology, with the aim of maximising returns on the securities in which investors invest. The fund offers investors a minimum investment horizon of five years. It is a global product, because there is no geographical restriction on investments, and it is multi-sector.

Determining sectors

To simplify the wide range of sectors that will be decisive in the metaverse, Edmond de Rothschild AM, investing in the entire value chain that the metaverse offers and will offer:

• Human interface: it encompasses companies whose technology will be essential to access the metaverse, for example, virtual and augmented reality devices (such as headsets), metaplatforms and smart equipment. The securities in the fund's portfolio include Sony, Nvidia, Microsoft, TSMC and Apple.
• Infrastructure: it includes companies that create technologies that allow connectivity, such as Wi-Fi, cloud or data centres. Examples of securities include Akamai, Verizon and OVH.
• Experiences and new use cases: this field would include companies that offer software and finance tools, cyber insurance, video games, design tools, 3D geospatial mapping engines, gamification, luxury consumer goods, and others. An example of a security is luxury giant LVMH, but also Alphabet or, in a completely different sector, such as insurance, Axa.
  

Democratisation of investment with an innovative product

Bankinter and Edmond de Rothschild AM are together launching this fund for the bank's customers to offer an innovative product that sparks the interest of many private banking investors. The bank wanted to expand this potential universe and also open it up to small investors, democratizing access to the fund, since investments can be made from as little as €100.

Experienced management team for one of the first European funds

This fund has become one of the first in Europe to invest in the metaverse. It will be managed by an investment team from Edmond de Rothschild that boasts an average of 13 years of technological and financial experience, supported by subject specialists who identify opportunities throughout the metaverse value chain.

This team stands out for being one of the first to make investments related to virtual reality, augmented reality and all the technologies that will make the metaverse possible. They also adopt a flexible approach, where dynamic selection of securities is the largest contributor to portfolio performance.