Digital asset investment manager CoinShares has completed its acquisition of digital assets and cryptocurrency hedge fund Bastion Asset Management, strengthening its systematic investment capabilities and expanding its offering to institutional investors.

Following the transaction, the business will operate under the name CoinShares Alternatives and will continue to be led by Bastion’s former senior management team. Philip Scott, previously chief executive of Bastion, joins CoinShares as Head of Alternatives, while former chief investment officer Fred Desobry becomes Head of Systematic Investment Strategies.

The acquisition combines Bastion’s systematic investment expertise and institutional client relationships with CoinShares’ broader investment platform, trading capabilities and operational infrastructure.

CoinShares said the transaction creates a foundation for expanding its alternatives business across a wider range of investment strategies, clients and assets under management, as institutional demand for digital asset-related investment products continues to grow.

Jean-Marie Mognetti, co-founder, president and chief executive of CoinShares, said the deal represented an important milestone in the development of the firm’s investment platform.

“Bastion brings an experienced team, a differentiated systematic investment process and an established strategy with a strong track record and institutional investor base,” Mognetti said.

“By combining these capabilities with CoinShares’ infrastructure, market access and global distribution, we believe we have a strong platform from which to scale our alternatives business and capture growing institutional demand for differentiated sources of return within digital assets.”