NYSE Arca has applied to list the Bitwise 10 Crypto Index Fund (BITW), the first and largest cryptocurrency index fund globally, as an exchange-traded product (ETP), Bitwise Asset Management announced on Thursday.
The filing is the most recent development in Bitwise‘s continuous endeavor to convert the publicly traded trust’s $1.3 billion structure to an ETP.
“Bitwise believes that ETPs are among the most efficient, convenient, and useful vehicles for providing crypto exposure,” said Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley. “We remain committed to converting BITW to an ETP.”
Among the many advantages that the ETP structure offers to shareholders are increased efficiency and regulatory protections. An ETP is notable for accepting subscriptions and redemptions at Net Asset Value (NAV) on a continuous basis. This arbitrage mechanism enables the fund to trade on the secondary market in a manner that is more closely aligned with its NAV.
The Bitwise 10 Crypto Index Fund was established in November 2017 and has provided investors with a wide range of exposure to high-performing cryptocurrency assets, such as bitcoin (75.1%), ethereum (16.5%), and solana (4.3%), in addition to lesser positions in XRP (1.6%), cardano (0.6%), avalanche (0.6%), bitcoin cash (0.4%), chainlink (0.4%), uniswap (0.3%), and polkadot (0.3%).
Bitwise’s Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan said:
From Bitwise’s beginning in 2017, we’ve sought to give investors easy exposure to crypto’s ground-breaking potential. BITW opened up new possibilities as the first fund to provide a broad, index-based approach to crypto markets, and it remains the leader in its class. We’re excited for the next phase of BITW’s development.
This listing along with the acquisition of Attestant Limited, an institutional-grade ethereum staking provider with $3.7 billion in staked assets is positioning Bitwise to offer investors professional non-custodial staking in addition to ETPs, hedge fund solutions, private funds, and strategies for separately managed accounts.
