Last week, I asked the Chief Investment Officer of the Police Fund, Katherine Molnar, how much the fund had invested in crypto-related investments. Molnar responded to me via email that:
“In rough terms, there are crypto-related investments having a value of approximately $120,000,000 currently in the Fairfax County Police Officer Pension Fund. The target exposure is 4.75% across venture capital, absolute return and fixed income/lending strategies. Currently, the actual exposure is 7.63%. This is due to strong early performance.”
I then asked if Molnar was concerned about the funds crypto-holdings, given especially the FTX debacle. Molnar leaned-in:
“I’m happy to report we had no direct/material exposure to FTX per our investment managers, outside of market volatility. The washing out of weak players or potentially inappropriate actors – while causing volatility and is admittedly stressful – is ultimately a healthy thing. Our underlying investment thesis – that the innovation around blockchain technology is a high growth area going forward – has not changed.”
I don’t get it. To me, this is perhaps the most reckless investment ever made by a public fund since the Chicago Housing Authority lost $14M buying fictional investments known then as prime bank notes. Yet, to Molnar this is a “healthy thing.”
Source: Why the Fairfax County Police Pension Fund Should Divest From Crypto | John Reed Stark
