Crypto asset manager Valkyrie is set to list its exchange-traded fund (ETF) offering exposure to stocks in bitcoin mining companies. The Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF will start trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the ticker symbol “WGMI” on Tuesday, according to a corporate filing Monday.
The new fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets in securities of firms that derive a minimum of 50% of their profit from bitcoin mining. This would include mining farms and companies producing specialized chips, hardware and software or other services to companies engaged in bitcoin mining, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Valkyrie’s new fund is actively managed, but wouldn’t invest directly in bitcoin or companies with BTC on their corporate balance sheets. Subadvised by Vident Investment Advisory, it has a management fee of 75 basis points, the documents note.
This milestone hastens the migration of more global mining power from China, which once hosted around 75% of the world’s bitcoin mining capacity, to North America. Well before China decided to crackdown on mining facilities, the landscape has been shifting as more regions want to plug into the grid.
Valkyrie withdrew its application for a leveraged bitcoin futures ETF
“The Fund is an actively-managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that will invest at least 80% of its net assets (plus borrowings for investment purposes) in securities of companies that derive at least 50% of their revenue or profits from bitcoin mining operations and/or from providing specialized chips, hardware and software or other services to companies engaged in bitcoin mining. The Fund will not directly invest in bitcoin, or indirectly through the use of derivatives or through investments in funds or trusts that hold bitcoin. Valkyrie Funds LLC (“Valkyrie” or the “Adviser”) serves as the Fund’s investment adviser and Vident Investment Advisory, LLC (“Vident” or the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as the Fund’s investment sub-adviser,” the filing reads.
Following the US regulators’ reluctance to approve a spot bitcoin ETF, many applicants have turned their focus to products offering exposure to the crypto futures market, bitcoin miners, or companies hold crypto on their balance sheets. Valkyrie itself was ordered by the SEC to withdraw its application for a leveraged bitcoin futures ETF.
The new offering follows the successful debut of the Valkyrie’s Bitcoin Strategy ETF on Nasdaq, which was preceded by ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO). The latter was the first Bitcoin futures ETF to get listed on a US exchange and accumulated more than $1.5 billion in assets in less than a month of trading.
