The Bitcoin ETF is approved and all of Web3 is celebrating. It has opened a new door for many new people, but what exactly is it and what does it mean
As Bitcoin and the crypto-asset space have become more well-known and popular, a variety of new ways to expand their reach have been developed. For example, the largest recent such effort is the introduction of Bitcoin Ordinals, a method of creating Bitcoin-native NFTs by engraving satoshis.
What are ETFs?
ETFs are baskets of assets that typically track an index or a sector of the economy. For example, instead of buying random shares of biotech companies, you could buy a biotech-focused ETF to quickly gain exposure to investments in a large number of related companies.
What is a Bitcoin ETF?
Another reason investors favor ETFs is that they greatly reduce friction in the investing process. You have every reason not to find out which companies are in the biotech ETFs we just talked about and buy them yourself, but with ETFs you don't have to bother.
The same goes for Bitcoin spot ETFs. Such an ETF would allow trade investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin, but without requiring the research into crypto wallets and private key storage that occupy so much attention in Bitcoin circles. It will also provide a safer and more regulated way to invest in the Bitcoin craze (although self-custody is still the better option if you have the skills and knowledge to manage it)
A similar instrument, the Bitcoin Futures ETF, has also been discussed. Bitcoin futures ETFs do not hold the actual digital asset like spot ETFs, but instead trade through so-called futures contracts that speculate on Bitcoin's future price movements. Until recently, seven Bitcoin exchange-traded funds traded futures.
What is BETF inscription?
BRC20 is a Bitcoin chain that does not have smart contracts or burning mechanisms like ERC20 because it does not have empty wallets.
So all miners use their BTC to mint BETF, and the more they mint, the more they pay in gas fees. BETF has no developers, no team behind it, and no market makers. Everything is community-based, all holders can mint, and it is completely decentralized.
