Cryptocurrency investment giant Grayscale is expanding its operations by launching a new cryptocurrency exchange-traded fund (ETF) in Europe.
On May 16, Grayscale officially announced its first European ETF called the Grayscale Future of Finance UCITS ETF.
The new investment product is listed on major European stock exchanges, including the London Stock Exchange, Borsa Italiana, and the electronic trading platform Xetra Deutsche Börse. The ETF, listed under the ticker symbol GFOF, will also be allowed to trade in Europe.
Exciting milestone: Announcement of our first European ETF, Grayscale Future of Finance UCITS ETF – Listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), Borsa Italiana and Deutsche Börse Xetra. https://t.co/kwmWSxvOiV — Shades of Gray (@shades of gray) May 16, 2022
Launched in partnership with Bloomberg, GFOF UCITS ET tracks the Bloomberg Grayscale Future of Finance Index. Bloomberg and Grayscale jointly launched the index in January 2022 in an effort to track the digital economy, focusing on three main areas such as technology, finance and digital assets.
According to the announcement, the new ETF includes companies directly involved in cryptocurrency mining, energy management and other activities in the digital asset ecosystem.
“With the GFOF UCITS ETF, European investors now have the opportunity to gain access to companies that play a key role in the evolution of the global financial system,” said David LaValle, global head of ETF Grayscale.
Grayscale also partnered with European issuer HANetf to create a new investment product. The issuer is known for collaborating on blockchain ETFs with companies such as the ETC Group.
Grayscale is one of the largest Bitcoin (BTC) investment companies in the world, providing Grayscale Bitcoin BTC Trust (GBTC) with $18.3 billion in assets under management. Amid huge market volatility, GBTC recorded a significant decline, trading at a discount of almost 31% on May 13.
The firm aggressively promoted its spot Bitcoin ETF, with CEO Michael Sonnenschein alleging that Grayscale was preparing for a legal battle with the US Securities and Exchange Commission if its ETF was rejected. The firm was reportedly trying to convince the SEC that turning the largest BTC fund into an ETF would open $8 billion to investors.
Related: Why the World Needs a US Bitcoin ETF: 21Shares CEO Explains
The news comes amid the growing adoption of crypto and industry ETFs around the world, with total assets invested in crypto ETFs reaching $16.3 billion in the first quarter of 2022.
21Shares, a major cryptocurrency ETF issuer in Europe, recently expanded its investment offering with Tier 1 exchange-traded products (ETPs) and decentralized finance (DeFi) infrastructure.
21Shares Layer 1 ETP (LAY1), listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange on May 12, offers investors access to five of the largest blockchains in the DeFi industry. 21Shares DeFi 10 Infrastructure ETP (DEFI) will be listed on the same exchange on May 18.
