After a lengthy delay, the first Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) in Europe is scheduled to launch later this year. In July 2022, the Jacobi Asset Management Bitcoin ETF was scheduled to make its debut on the Euronext Amsterdam exchange. Jacobi Asset Management is a London-based multi-asset investing platform. In October 2021, the Guernsey financial authority approved.
Jacob Asset Management was slated to list on the Euronext Amsterdam Exchange for the first time in July 2022. The Terra ecosystem collapse in May 2022 and the FTX collapse in November, however, led the asset manager to delay the listing due to exceptional market conditions. The Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC) granted permission for the Jacobi Bitcoin ETF to introduce its Bitcoin ETF in October 2021.
The Jacobi Bitcoin ETF is a significant departure from traditional exchange-traded notes (ETNs) in that it is a centrally cleared crypto-backed financial instrument with custody provided by Fidelity Digital Assets. All traditional financial instruments with cryptocurrency backing were designed as ETNs rather than funds in Europe.
The primary distinction between an ETN and an ETF is that ETN investors possess debt securities, whereas ETF shareholders own a piece of the fund’s underlying assets. Contrary to ETNs, ETFs are not permitted to use leverage or derivatives, which could increase the danger of market manipulation.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has so far rejected all spot Bitcoin ETFs, despite the European Union having approved the first spot Bitcoin ETF in October 2021. But in 2023 alone, roughly a dozen institutional goliaths—including BlackRock and Fidelity—made new requests for spot Bitcoin ETFs. One of these requests might end up being the first Bitcoin ETF approved in the US. A few futures Bitcoin ETFs were already approved by the SEC in 2021.
