In brief
- Fidelity Investments has filed for a new Bitcoin Index Fund, according to SEC documents.
- Fidelity has been a consistent Bitcoin watcher, with investments around the globe.
- The new fund would allow unlimited investments from accredited investors.
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Fidelity is launching a new Bitcoin fund, as revealed in SEC documents filed Wednesday.
President of Fidelity Investments Peter Jubber submitted Form D documents to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, setting up a Bitcoin index fund just as the cryptocurrency continues its record-breaking run above $10,000. Dubbed the Wise Origin Bitcoin Index Fund I, the filing is a major vote of confidence from a firm that has traditionally been bullish on digital gold.
The SEC filing requires investments of at least $100,000 from outside investors, and shows that no funds have been collected so far. The fund will be managed from Fidelity’s Smithfield, Rhode Island, office. It was filed under a Rule 506(b) exemption, which allows unlimited investment from accredited investors but bars advertising of any kind for the fund.
Fidelity has recently made moves to increase its presence in the cryptocurrency ecosystem in Europe and the UK, providing Bitcoin custodial services through its Fidelity Digital Assets business unit. Fidelity Investments holds $3.3 trillion in assets under management, according to Bloomberg, and has more than 45,000 employees around the world.
Fidelity was also granted a coveted N.Y. state BitLicense in November 2019, allowing the company to provide crypto service to New York residents and expand their crypto-related operations.
Fidelity has been a regular source of Bitcoin-related surveys and research over the last few years. It found in June that up to 25% of institutional investors hold Bitcoin in some form, a number that may climb higher after today’s filing of the Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund. Executives of Fidelity Digital Assets have also gone on the record speaking fondly of Bitcoin in an era of growing financial uncertainty and negative interest rates.
Furthermore, Fidelity is a backer for institutional L2 trading protocol Fireblocks, providing a behind-the-scenes bridge between institutional trading platforms and DeFi applications like Compound. A Fidelity-backed exchange, OSL Digital Securities, recently won a crypto trading license in Hong Kong, expanding the firm’s reach in Asia as well.
With investments around the globe and a new US-based Bitcoin Index Fund filing in the book, Fidelity seems well-positioned to take advantage of growth in the crypto landscape.