Grayscale Unveils Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF

Bitcoin currency

Grayscale Investments’ Bitcoin Mini Trust began trading Wednesday with a 0.15% expense ratio, offering a lower-cost option for exposure to bitcoin in an increasingly competitive market for crypto-focused funds.

The Mini Trust, which has the ticker BTC and is traded on NYSE Arca, is structured as a subsidiary of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). The new shares will be distributed to existing GBTC shareholders, with the trust contributing a portion of its bitcoin holdings to the new product. According to a press release from the company, BTC’s S-1 registration statement went into effect last week.

“The Grayscale team has believed in the transformative potential of Bitcoin since the initial launch of GBTC in 2013, and we are excited to launch the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust to help further lower the barrier to accessing Bitcoin in an SEC-regulated investment vehicle,” said David LaValle, senior managing director of ETFs at Grayscale.

The launch of the Bitcoin Mini Trust comes amid growing interest in ETFs based on the ongoing price action of bitcoin and ether, the two largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. Spot bitcoin ETFs have generated about $18 billion in inflows since the first ones began trading on Jan. 11, but GBTC has lost about $19 billion in assets.

What sets this fund apart from other funds is that it is a conversion of an existing trust and carries a 1.5% fee, the highest among spot bitcoin products that have received SEC approval this year.

Mini Bitcoin Trust’s Low Fees

Bloomberg Senior ETF Analyst Eric Balchunas noted in a Wednesday note on X that the Bitcoin Mini Trust has “the lowest fees in its category…”

“[Important] “It’s hard to realize how insanely cheap 15bps is — about 10 times cheaper than spot ETFs in other countries and other instruments,” Balchunas wrote, adding that this pricing strategy reflects the competitive nature of the U.S. ETF market, which he called the “ETF Terror Dome.”

“This is what Terrordome does to raise funds [cost].Come to 1.5% [and] It ends at 0.15%, just like going from here [a] “from country club to jungle. But that’s why all the flows are here, it’s heaven for investors,” he said.

Read More: Spot Bitcoin ETF Inflows Reach One-Day Peak Above $1 Billion

Bitcoin was trading roughly sideways at around $66,350 since U.S. markets opened on Wednesday.

Grayscale also offers two spot Ethereum ETFs, Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE) and Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust (ETH), the performance of which is based on ETHE. ETHE outflows exceeded $1.8 billion in its first six trading days, while ETH added more than $181 million in the same period, according to Farside. The remaining seven ETFs generated inflows of approximately $1.2 billion.

The story continues

Read More: Spot Ethereum ETFs Approved to Begin Trading

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