Cody McGrath 
Fairfax County keeps investing in cryptocurrencies through the VanEck Crypto Lending Fund. Through the asset manager, the county is also learning more about yield farming.
Fairfax County, Virginia, has started putting a portion of a $35 million allocation into a bitcoin loan fund run by global asset managers VanEck.
Fairfax County, which is putting funds from two retirement systems into a number of cryptocurrency-focused investment channels, stated that it has received a first tranche of the investment commitment.
Fairfax County had already hinted at entering the field of Decentralized Finance (DeFi) yield farming as part of its progressive approach to bitcoin.
From 2018 onwards, the county began investing a tiny amount of its Employees’ Retirement System and Police Officers’ Retirement Fund holdings in various cryptocurrency enterprises and ventures.
Fairfax’s entrance into the realm of DeFi has officially commenced with its investment in VanEck’s New Finance Income Fund, as it continues to diversify its cryptocurrency investment strategy. The fund makes short-term loans to bitcoin companies, platforms, and businesses.
According to the VanEck website, the fund lends fiat dollars and stablecoins to cryptocurrency borrowers. The fund, which is aimed at accredited investors, provides high-yield income exposure to cryptocurrencies and requires a $1 million initial commitment. The investment manager promotes a “simplified methodology that reduces the operational overhead of direct digital asset lending.”
Fairfax County has gradually boosted its investment in the sector, committing cash to seven cryptocurrency-focused allocations. One of these allocations seeks to profit from market volatility, with a hedge fund aiming to capitalize on yield farming, basis trading, and exchange arbitrage opportunities.
The County previously provided an update on its bitcoin and blockchain investments, with the Employees’ and Police Retirement Systems each investing $10 million and $11 million into Morgan Creek’s Blockchain Opportunities Fund, respectively.
Both funds’ capital allocation is less than 1% of their total assets under management, as the country gradually assesses the investing potential of the alternative asset class.