The UK's financial services regulator has approved the first exchange-traded cryptocurrency products, marking a step towards catching up with other financial centers in digital assets.
WisdomTree said it has received approval from the Financial Conduct Authority to list two physical asset-backed cryptocurrency exchange-traded products that track Bitcoin and Ether on the London Stock Exchange. It is possible that trading of the two products will begin as soon as May 28, according to a statement issued by the company on Wednesday.
Other issuers that have applied to list their crypto products in the UK include ETC Group, 21Shares and CoinShares. A website affiliated with the Financial Conduct Authority showed the approvals for the applications of WisdomTree, TwentyOneShares and Invesco Digital Markets as of 12 noon today, Wednesday, which is the deadline to join the first day of trading.