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Canada's large public pensions have always avoided cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (CRYPTO: $BTC ), until now.

Long viewed as too risky an investment, several of Canada's largest pensions say they are now reevaluating crypto investments as they become more mainstream and regulated.

Media reports say that Canadian pensions such as the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec are commissioning studies on blockchain's potential to improve efficiency in settlement, verification, and recordkeeping.

Several other pensions are said to be investigating stablecoins and monitoring crypto projects by European and Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds.

For Canada's conservative pension funds, this marks a meaningful shift from outright avoidance to cautious exploration, say analysts.

The shift comes after Canada's federal government in Ottawa included a framework to regulate stablecoins in its most recent budget.

At the same time, the Bank of Canada is monitoring cryptocurrencies' impact on financial markets and stability.

Canada's central bank has acknowledged that tokenization could "improve liquidity, transparency, and efficiency in private markets," benefits that align with pension fund mandates.

And, Canada's Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI), Canada's supervisor of banks, has begun outlining guidance for federally regulated institutions on crypto exposure and custody requirements.

For now, Canada's approach is relatively cautious and conservative compared to the U.S., where crypto adoption has grown more mainstream and widespread.

In the U.S., asset managers such as BlackRock (NYSE: $BLK ) have begun adding Bitcoin and other crypto to retirement investments.

Wall Street investment banks such as Morgan Stanley (NYSE: $MS ) have moved to launch their own cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

According to "The Crypto Wealth Report 2025," global crypto wealth has surged to $3.3 trillion U.S., with 590 million people globally holding some form of cryptocurrency.