21Shares, the Swiss firm that pioneered cryptocurrency exchange-traded products or ETPs, is entering the UK market with 21Shares Bitcoin ETP (ABTC), now also available to institutional investors.
Following the recent debut of Bitcoin ETPs in the UK market, marked by ETC Group with its BTCE Bitcoin, the UK’s Aquis Exchange now welcomes 21Shares.
And it is precisely 21Shares that today announced its landing on the UK regulated market.
According to reports, the successful listing of 21Shares Bitcoin ETP (ABTC) on the exchange was the result of a partnership with GHCO, a leading market-maker and liquidity provider specializing in ETFs.
Aquis Exchange, which is a European Multilateral Trading Facility or MTF (an alternative to the traditional exchange market) is headquartered in London and Paris and already offers trading for some of the largest and most liquid assets in 15 European markets.
Thus, 21Shares Bitcoin ETP will be traded in much the same way as a listed stock, with exposure to Bitcoin through a regulated framework and a typical structure that institutional investors in the UK are accustomed to.
Institutional Investors and Bitcoin ETPs: a growing number of meeting places in the UK
Bringing together two worlds separated by financial instruments is what many regulated exchanges are creating with Bitcoin ETPs!
Institutional investors on one side and Bitcoin on the other, continue to see an increase in encounters, which could broaden the mass adoption of the queen of cryptocurrencies, which already has $677 billion in market capitalization.
Specifically, 21Shares Bitcoin ETP (ABTC) is designed to provide UK institutional investors with safe and convenient exposure to bitcoin without the associated challenges related to Bitcoin custody and security.
One unit of 21Shares Bitcoin ETP represents exposure to approximately 0.00035 bitcoin.
Furthermore, GHCO, will act as a liquidity provider for the Bitcoin ETP, meaning that institutional investors will have access to ample liquidity with the same ease as the underlying asset.
The real mission of this new partnership between 21Shares and Aquis Exchange is to be able to bring more of 21Shares’ institutional cryptocurrency products to institutional investors in the UK.
For example, ETPs of not only bitcoin but also other major cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum, Ripple, Tezos, Polkadot, Cardano and Stellar.
In this regard, CEO of 21Shares, Hany Rashwan, expressed himself in the following way:
“This is the right time to bring our successful crypto ETP to the institutional UK market. Our strong track record and existing institutional reach across continental Europe means that investors can confidently gain exposure to Bitcoin via a liquid and conventional investment product.”
Dan Izzo, CEO of GHCO, added:
“ETPs are a key development for investing in crypto assets as it matures as an asset class. We expect more demand for this reliable, easily-accessible infrastructure with deep pools of liquidity – liquidity that we are happy to facilitate.”
And finally, Aquis Exchange CEO Alasdair Haynes commented as follows:
“We have been working alongside 21Shares on this project as we are keen to respond to institutional demand in the UK for digital assets.”
