The Ontario Securities Commission has approved a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). A final decision document was issued on February 11 approving the Purpose Bitcoin ETF, which is managed by Purpose Investments Inc. According to the long-form prospectus, the Purpose Bitcoin ETF is an alternative mutual fund that “invests in and holds substantially all of its assets in long-term holdings of the digital currency bitcoin”. Cidel Trust Company, a subsidiary of Cidel Bank Canada, is designated as the fund’s custodian. Gemini, the crypto company founded by investors Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, is acting as the fund’s sub-custodian. The ETF is conditionally approved to trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX). According to Purpose Investments, the ETF is the first in the world to invest directly in physically settled Bitcoin, rather than derivatives.
