The first bitcoin traded fund (ETF) in North America now holds more than 11,000 bitcoins. Objective Bitcoin ETF saw a keen interest in the launch. An ETF researcher explained that the increase in interest was evidence of some combination of pent-up demand, the price of bitcoin and investors switching to other means of gaining exposure to the cryptocurrency.
North America’s first Bitcoin ETF with over 11,000 Bitcoins
The first approved North American exchange-traded fund (ETF), Purpose Bitcoin ETF, is holding 11,141,2363 bitcoins on March 2. According to Purpose Investments, which manages the fund, bitcoin ETF currently has CA $ 669 million ($ 530 million) in assets under management.
Purpose Bitcoin ETF gained widespread attention when it was launched on February 18 on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX). The fund obtained more than $ 165 million in turnover on the first day. The ETF is traded under the symbols BTCC.B (units denominated in Canadian dollars of ETF without exchange coverage) and BTCC.U (units denominated in US dollars of ETF without exchange coverage).
However, trade has slowed significantly since its launch. The volume stood at $ 17 million on Tuesday. Ben Johnson, Morningstar’s global ETF research director, was quoted by Bloomberg as saying: “The initial spike in interest was evidence of some combination of pent-up demand, investors switching from other means of gaining exposure to bitcoin and the fact that that bitcoin price was reaching new highs when Purpose ETF started trading. In the long run, I expect volumes to correlate with the price of bitcoin. “
Canada’s securities regulator has approved another bitcoin ETF. The ETF Evolve Bitcoin started trading on TSX the day after the ETF Purpose Bitcoin. It is traded under the symbol EBIT (which offers exposure to the daily movement of the bitcoin price in Canadian dollars) and EBIT.U (which offers exposure to the daily movement of the bitcoin price in US dollars).
The volume of ETF Evolve Bitcoin at launch was around $ 15 million. Its volume fell to about $ 3.2 million in shares on Tuesday. The ETF reduced its management fee from 1% to 0.75% on February 24, making it cheaper than the fees charged by the ETF Purpose Bitcoin. On March 2, Evolve filed a request to list and trade an ether ETF designed to provide investors with exposure to ETH.
Meanwhile, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has not approved any cryptocurrency ETF. President Joe Biden’s choice to head the SEC, Gary Gensler, has not yet been confirmed as SEC chairman. This week, the Chicago Board Options Exchange (Cboe) filed a request with the SEC to list and trade an ETF bitcoin.
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