Grayscale Investments, which is a venture capital firm in New York, had a great 2019. It managed to bank more than $1 billion in its total investments. The firm just released an 18-page report. In it, the firm explained the details of the fourth quarter of 2019. It raised $225.5 million in its investment products. That was added to the year's previous quarters for a total investment of more than $607.7 million. Quarters three and four both had more than $225 million in investments.

Of those investments, 17 percent were from institutional investors. According to Grayscale Investments managing director Michael Sonnenshein, the firm saw a record-breaking level of investments in its family of products. Those investments demonstrate a continued high demand from investors who want access to a range of digital currency products. It also shows that a majority of institutions are now adopting the idea of investing in cryptocurrencies. Once there are institutional investors, individuals are more likely to see cryptocurrency investments as legitimate.

The firm's existing clients accounted for more than 75 percent of the capital that was raised. Around 36 percent of the Grayscale Investments clients use multiple products offered by the company. In 2019,the company's client base increased by 24 percent.

The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust lead 2019's demand for investments. It accounted for $471.7 million. Of that amount, $193.8 million was raised in the fourth quarter. This was a record high for the firm. The firm's communications director, Marissa Arnold, was quoted as saying that as the largest digital currency asset manager, they feel that their numbers indicate a broad market sentiment and institutional acceptance of digital currencies.

The firm thinks that this growth might have something to do with young investors. According to Arnold, the asset class of cryptocurrencies is going through a validation process from old o legacy companies, such as Fidelity and CME. This demonstrates to other institutions and the overall investment community that cryptocurrencies are on the market to stay as a class of assets. Young investors in particular are looking at Bitcoin and other digital coins as a relatively safe investment.