Ark Investment Management partners with 21Shares to file for Bitcoin ETF

Ark Investment Management has joined a list of firms to file a Bitcoin-exchange traded fund (ETF) with the United States Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC).

Ark Invest jumps into Bitcoin ETF race

The New York-based investment management firm with over $50 billion in assets under management has partnered with European exchange-traded product issuer 21Shares to file for a Bitcoin ETF – the Ark21Shares ETF. 

According to the SEC filing, the Bitcoin ETF would be listed on the Chicago Board Options Exchange’s (Cboe) BZX Exchange. Cboe has filed multiple filings to launch other similar funds, including VanEck and WisdomTree’s BTC ETF. 

The ETF would consist of holding Bitcoin directly, as well as tracking the S&P BTC index – a tool developed by the S&P Dow Jones Indices. The index relies on data from Binance, Bitfinex, Bittrex, Bitstamp, Coinbase Pro, Gemini and a few other exchanges to reach a unified price based on “a combination of qualitative and quantitative metrics.”

The founder and CEO of Ark Investment Management, Cathie Wood, is also a board member of 21Shares, the fourth-largest institutional crypto product issuer by assets under management with over $1 billion. 

21Shares is the sponsor of the trust, while Ark Invest will support marketing the ETF shares, according to the filing. 

Bank of New York Mellon will act as an administrator and transfer agent for the newly proposed ETF, while Coinbase is expected to custody the Bitcoin directly purchased.

Bitcoin ETF applications have witnessed a wave of extensions as the SEC requires more time to examine the proposals before making a decision. The newly proposed ETF will see its clock start on a decision when Cboe files the companion 19b-4 for the ARK 21Shares offering.

Recently, the SEC asked the public to weigh in on the VanEck Bitcoin ETF proposal. The securities regulator would like interested parties to give feedback on the potential risks the new financial product would pose to the market.