A Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) will launch in North America for the first time, as Canadian regulators greenlight the Purpose Bitcoin ETF.
While the US is still struggling with the idea of an ETF based on Bitcoin’s performance, the Ontario Securities Committee (OSC) has approved an application by financial services firm Purpose Investments to launch this type of artifact in several regions of Canada.
On the endorsement it is written that Purpose Investments is applying under the following Canadian jurisdictions: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, Yukon, Nunavut and Northwest Territories.
The fund will only buy the primary cryptocurrency, Bitcoin. It will also allow investors to buy in US dollars or Canadian dollars. It will be listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX). The prospectus describes the Purpose Bitcoin ETF as “an alternative mutual fund that invests in the long-term assets of the digital currency Bitcoin and holds substantially all of its assets.”
Bitcoin ETFs were not approved in the USA
Cidel Trust Company, a subsidiary of Cidel Bank Canada, will be responsible for the fund. In a different form, the fund’s subordinate will be Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss’ crypto firm Gemini. Ernst & Young will take on the mission as auditor.
Only investors seeking long-term capital growth and able to tolerate “high risk” should allocate funds to the ETF, according to a fact sheet shared by the finance company. Individuals looking for a “stable source of income” are advised not to invest in ETFs.
Canada’s approval of this ETF means that the North American continent will finally have its first Bitcoin ETF. While this is the case in Canada, ETF applications are not approved in its neighbor to the south, the USA. The US Securities and Exchange Committee (SEC) had rejected numerous applications for Bitcoin funds trading on the stock market.