The Fidelity Advantage Bitcoin ETF would invest in bitcoin directly or through derivative instruments, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing on November 22.
Investors will have the option of paying in Canadian or US currency. As per Bloomberg, the EFT might debut this week on the Toronto Stock Exchange with the ticker FBTC.
Fidelity will be the first and largest asset management to offer a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).
“The fact that one of America’s biggest and most historic names in investment is compelled to go up north to serve its clients should disgrace the SEC. But it’s unlikely to make a difference,” Eric Balchunas, a senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, said.
Fidelity accelerates
In mid-September, Fidelity executives held a private session with SEC regulators to discuss the products.
Fidelity cited increasing investor demand for crypto assets, rising Bitcoin ownership, and similar funds launched in other nations as reasons for approving crypto ETFs.
The appeal seems to have been ignored.
After two and a half months, the SEC has yet to approve its ETF filings. In March, Fidelity filed for the Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust.
The SEC has approved two futures-backed Bitcoin ETFs but not one that invests directly in the asset. The ETF Store’s President Nate Geraci responded to SEC Chairman Gary Gensler’s concerns:
“If the SEC is worried, why did it allow Coinbase to go public? Coinbase has more accounts than Schwab. Users pay 3% commissions to buy crypto they don’t own. What distinguishes it from a bitcoin ETF?”
A competitor to the US financial system, Gensler stated on Dec. 1 that Bitcoin was formed “in reaction” to it.
More ETF news
On December 2, Balchunas announced that VanEck had filed for a Digital Assets Mining ETF, however, information was scarce at the time.
On November 30, Purpose Investments announced the launch of the world’s first actively managed and covered call Cryptocurrency ETFs.
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