The new BITC ETF will use an “optimum roll” strategy to focus on long-term returns for investors.
Bitwise Asset Management, creators of the Bitwise Crypto Industry Innovators ETF and Bitwise Web3 ETF, have introduced a new “Bitwise Bitcoin Strategy Optimum Roll ETF” under the symbol BITC.
According to the press release, the fund “was created to offer investors professionally managed and regulated bitcoin exposure uniquely designed to minimize pricing inefficiencies that can arise in bitcoin-linked ETFs focused on month futures contracts.” previous or close”. The ETF aims to address this using what it describes as an “optimal rollover strategy that considers all available contracts and intelligently selects the contracts with the lowest level of contango (or highest level of arrears) in an effort to to maximize long-term returns.
Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan explained why this particular structure was chosen.
“Historically, optimal rollover strategies in other asset classes, such as oil and natural gas futures, have outperformed strategies focused on prior-month or next-month contracts over time,” he said. “We believe this same strategy can be applied to the bitcoin futures market as it continues to deepen and evolve.”
Additionally, the fund’s structure as an SEC-regulated ETF will make bitcoin exposure available in a format “overwhelmingly favored by financial professionals,” according to the report. Press releasequoting investigation by Bitwise and VettaFi exploring the attitudes of financial advisors towards cryptocurrencies which found that ETFs were the preferred method of investment for 68% of advisors.
“If there’s one thing that’s been reinforced in the past year, it’s that how you invest in cryptocurrency is just as important as what you invest in,” Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley reiterated. “The Bitwise Bitcoin Strategy Optimum Roll ETF provides institutions, advisers and their clients with a professional and regulated solution to add exposure to bitcoin returns while avoiding the risks of holding bitcoin directly or investing through novel platforms.”
The custodian of the BITC ETF is BNY Mellon and the fund’s distributor is Foreside Fund Services, LLC.
It should be noted that holding Bitcoin futures ETFs introduces third-party risk that is not present for those who hold spot bitcoins in self-custody wallets.
