Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest teams up with 21Shares to file for Bitcoin ETF

Wood recently asserted the crypto downtrend has improved the chances of a Bitcoin ETF securing regulatory approval.

Ark Investment Management has become the latest firm to file for a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).

According to a June 28 filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) submitted in partnership with European exchange-traded product issuer, 21Shares, the ETF would be listed on the Chicago Board Options Exchange’s (CBOE) BZX Exchange and trade under the ticker ARKB.

The ETF would also track the S&P BTC index, with the trust underpinning the ETF also holding BTC directly. The filing has received praise from the crypto industry.

The great folks over at @21Shares_ just filed for a Bitcoin ETF in partnership with Cathie Wood and @ARKInvest.@hany and the team continue to build one of the most important and valuable asset managers in the industry.

— Pomp (@APompliano) June 28, 2021

Cathie Wood, the CEO and founder of Ark Invest, also serves as a board member to 21Shares. According to CoinShares, 21Shares is currently the fourth-largest institutional crypto product issuer by assets under management with more than $1 billion.

ETF analyst, Eric Balchunas, told BNN Bloomberg that if approved, the Bitcoin ETF would be of significant benefit to 21Shares, allowing the firm to penetrate the U.S. market.

Ark is a big investor in the crypto space, holding shares in Grayscale’s Bitcoin and Ethereum trusts in addition to Coinbase stock. Cathie Wood is also a major Bitcoin proponent, recently reiterating her prediction that Bitcoin’s price will one day tag $500,000 despite the recent crypto downturn.

Related: Major players will speak at a new Bitcoin event aimed at institutional investors

Despite the SEC having rejected every application it has received for a Bitcoin ETF so far, Wood recently speculated that the odds of an ETF being approved by the regulator improved after the recent crypto retracement.

Earlier this month, the SEC delayed decisions on two major Bitcoin ETFs, extending the review period for the respective Bitcoin ETFs proposed by VanEck and Valkyrie Digital Assets by 45 days each.