ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood is making her 2026 priorities clear: she's shifting focus beyond the mega-cap "Magnificent 7" tech stocks and leaning harder into what she believes will be the next wave of transformative innovation. And crypto is sitting right at the top of that list.
In a Sunday interview with Sampru TV, Wood laid out her crypto hierarchy with the conviction you'd expect from someone who's never been afraid to take contrarian positions. Bitcoin (BTC) holds the crown as her number-one crypto allocation. She describes it as something bigger than just another asset—it's a global monetary system, a technology platform, and an entirely new asset class rolled into one.
Coming in second is Ethereum (ETH), which Wood views as the institutional backbone for smart contracts. Third place goes to Solana (SOL), the blockchain she considers best positioned for consumer-focused applications.
Following the Money Into Crypto Equities
ARK's equity holdings tell a similar story. Coinbase (COIN) stands as the firm's largest position, followed by Robinhood (HOOD) and stablecoin issuer Circle (CRCL). Together, these crypto-adjacent plays give ARK a diversified way to capture upside in digital assets beyond direct token exposure.
Wood pegged ARK's total crypto exposure at roughly 12-13% of the portfolio, a level she considers appropriate for the current market environment. But she's watching for a specific catalyst that could change the game entirely.
The breakthrough moment, according to Wood, will come when major wealth management platforms—think Morgan Stanley, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo, and UBS—finally greenlight spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs for inclusion in client portfolios and model allocations.
Sure, these ETFs already exist and trade every day. But most of the big wirehouses haven't yet added them to their approved product menus, which means financial advisors can't easily recommend them to clients. Wood suspects these institutions have been waiting for Bitcoin's four-year cycle to mature and for the recent drawdown to run its course before committing more capital.
The Tesla Rebalancing Story
Wood also addressed the elephant in the room: ARK's recent Tesla (TSLA) sales. Some observers questioned whether this signaled a loss of faith in the electric vehicle maker, but Wood framed it as straightforward portfolio management.
After Tesla's strong run-up, the position had simply grown too large relative to other holdings. ARK took profits and redirected that capital into crypto assets during a period of market dislocation triggered by regulatory uncertainty and a sharp selloff.
"We tend to rebalance the portfolio in that way when one stock moves up relative to others that are going through a painful moment," Wood explained.
She also pushed back against critics who claim ARK's innovation-focused strategy only works when interest rates are low. Wood argued that the Federal Reserve is missing deflationary signals that could drive inflation lower next year, making today's elevated rates unnecessary.
As evidence, she pointed to 2017 and 2018, when ARK delivered strong outperformance even as the Fed was raising rates. The message: innovation investing isn't just a zero-rate phenomenon—it can thrive in various market environments if you're picking the right trends.