Valkyrie Joins the Race for Spot Bitcoin ETF Approval

Thursday, 22/06/2023 | 11:10 GMT by Jared Kirui

BlackRock, Invesco, and WisdomTree have also applied for spot Bitcoin ETFs.

But, the SEC has shown reluctance in the past citing inadequate market regulations.

Valkyrie's logo

The fund management firm, Valkyrie Investments has filed for a Bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) joining several companies that have submitted similar applications in the last week. The application was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on June 21.

If the application is granted, Valkyrie’s spot Bitcoin ETF will be listed on Nasdaq under the symbol BRRR, the company noted in an S-1 registration form. The spot bitcoin ETF will issue common shares that track the performance of Bitcoin as represented by the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate in New York.

SEC’s Stance

Valkyrie joins a long list of management companies seeking approval for a spot bitcoin ETF despite the reluctance of the SEC. Most recently, BlackRock applied for a spot bitcoin ETF that would use the CME CF Bitcoin Reference rate to track the price of the top cryptocurrency.

The decision by the SEC to reject a spot bitcoin in the past has always been due to one problem: the lack of adequate regulations in the market. That was the case with WisdomTree and Cboe BZX's Spot Bitcoin ETF Exchange’s application, which were both rejected on the same grounds. However, Canada and Australia have approved several spot ETFs for Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Valkyrie filed a fresh application for a Bitcoin futures ETF dubbed the Valkyrie Bitcoin Futures Leveraged Strategy ETF (BTFD) in May. Unlike the firm’s already active BTF Fund, BTFD allows investors to employ its lending facilities to speculate. During the unveiling, the company said it had seen an increasing demand among institutions for the price and volatility of Bitcoin without holding the digital asset.

Valkyrie’s Bitcoin Futures ETF

Valkyrie was the second to launch a Bitcoin futures ETF in 2021, the Valkyrie Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BTF), after ProShares. However, Valkyrie was forced to discontinue Valkyrie Balance Sheet Opportunities ETF, which is a separate fund that offered investors indirect exposure to Bitcoin, due to low demand.

Other companies also piling pressure on the SEC to approve spot bitcoin ETFs are WidomTree and Invesco. Both asset management firms announced their intentions to create their own spot bitcoin ETFs on Wednesday. It is the second time that Invesco is seeking to create a spot Bitcoin ETF after an earlier attempt in partnership with Galaxy Digital failed.