Company Allows Citizenship in Portugal by Investing in Bitcoin: Understand
A new private equity fund will allow foreign investors to obtain Portuguese and EU citizenship by indirectly investing in Bitcoin, according to the project's co-founder and CEO.
The Unbound Fund is promoted as the first "Web3 fund" participating in Portugal's Golden Visa program, which grants residency and EU citizenship to foreigners who invest a minimum of €500,000 (about $550,000) in local businesses or assets.
To meet this requirement, Unbound Fund will transfer investments to national "special purpose vehicles" (SPVs) under the joint supervision of fund manager Green One Capital and advisor Unbound Capital, said co-founder and CEO Alessandro Palombo.
The SPVs will buy shares of spot Bitcoin ETFs via BlackRock instead of directly holding BTC. Palombo explained that this strategy was chosen for "security and simplicity" due to heavy regulatory requirements. Investors must purchase shares worth at least €500,000 using fiat currency.
The fund's operations will be subject to independent audits, and Bitcoin price fluctuations will not affect investors' Golden Visa eligibility, even if the investment value drops below €500,000.
Unbound was registered as a private equity fund with the Securities Market Commission (CMVM) on May 24. The fund is listed as "authorized" in the agency's online database but is currently inactive.
Patricia Casaburi, CEO of investment migration consultancy Global Citizen Solutions, told Decrypt that the eligibility of funds investing indirectly in Bitcoin, Bitcoin ETFs, or gold for the Golden Visa program would depend on AIMA's reviews and analyses over time. Her company has 35 Portuguese Golden Visa funds in its portfolio and is aware of another crypto fund about to launch.
Palombo hopes Unbound will generate interest in Portugal among crypto investors and demonstrate the broader potential of crypto assets to facilitate "freedom of movement" worldwide.
