$8 trillion asset manager Vanguard will not allow its customers to buy bitcoin ETFs

• Vanguard will not permit its users to buy any of the new bitcoin ETFs that launched on Thursday.
• The asset manager told Business Insider that it doesn't view crypto as a part of a "well-balanced" investment portfolio.
• Vanguard's main rival, BlackRock, is taking the opposite view and embracing bitcoin with its own ETF.

Vanguard, the world's second-largest asset manager with about $8 trillion in assets, will not allow its customers to purchase any of the 11 recently-launched bitcoin ETFs.

Vanguard customers who tried to buy shares of a bitcoin ETF on Thursday were greeted with a message that said the trade could not be completed. This is a sharp contrast with other brokerage firms like Charles Schwab, Fidelity, and E*Trade, all of which are permitting their customers to purchase the newly approved bitcoin ETFs.

In a statement to Business Insider, Vanguard said: 

"While we continuously evaluate our brokerage offer and evaluate new product entries to the market, spot Bitcoin ETFs will not be available for purchase on the Vanguard platform. We also have no plans to offer Vanguard Bitcoin ETFs or other crypto-related products."

"Our perspective is that these products do not align with our offer focused on asset classes such as equities, bonds, and cash, which Vanguard views as the building blocks of a well-balanced, long-term investment portfolio."

Vanguard's main rival, BlackRock, is taking the opposite view and embracing bitcoin with its own spot bitcoin ETF, which began trading Thursday under the ticker IBIT.

Vanguard's stance isn't far off from that of another major player in the market: Securities and Exchange Commission chair Gary Gensler. 

Gensler had some harsh comments on bitcoin in a statement related to the approval of bitcoin ETFs on Wednesday.

Gensler said that bitcoin "is primarily a speculative, volatile asset that's also used for illicit activity including ransomware, money laundering, sanction evasion, and terrorist financing."

He added, "While we approved the listing and trading of certain spot bitcoin ETP shares today, we did not approve or endorse bitcoin. Investors should remain cautious about the myriad risks associated with bitcoin and products whose value is tied to crypto."