The first-ever bitcoin ETF will start trading on Tuesday
ProShares said it will launch the first-ever bitcoin-linked exchange-traded fund in the US on Tuesday, Oct. 19.
The ETF will begin trading Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange under the "BITO" ticker symbol.
Investors are still waiting for the SEC to launch a bitcoin ETF with the cryptocurrency directly as the underlying security.
The first-ever bitcoin-linked exchange-traded fund will begin trading on Tuesday, the provider ProShares said in a statement. The launch will mark another milestone in a notable year for the cryptocurrency market.
The ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF will trade under the ticker symbol "BITO" on the New York Stock Exchange, the company said. The ETF will invest primarily in bitcoin futures contracts and will not directly invest in bitcoin.
The company said BITO can be bought and sold like a stock and doesn't require investors to hold an account at a cryptocurrency exchange or to have a crypto wallet.
"We believe a multitude of investors have been eagerly awaiting the launch of a bitcoin-linked ETF after years of efforts to launch one," ProShares CEO Michael Sapir said in the statement. Sapir told The New York Times - who first reported the news - that the company would be the first to market with a bitcoin-futures ETF, to trade on the NYSE.
The arrival of the bitcoin-futures ETF comes as the red-hot cryptocurrency has shattered the $1 trillion market capitalization threshold, helping the broader crypto market grow to a market value exceeding $2 trillion.
Bitcoin climbed as much as 6% to $62,667.51 on Monday, just 4% below its all-time high of $64,869.78 reached in mid-April.
Bloomberg reported late last week the Securities and Exchange Commission was set to allow the first US bitcoin futures to start soon.
Dozens of companies are still waiting for the SEC to approve an ETF with the cryptocurrency directly as the underlying asset.
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