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First Bitcoin, soon Ethereum. Here’s what the next crypto ETF will look like

First Bitcoin, soon Ethereum. Here’s what the next crypto ETF will look like
Markets
The SEC and its chair Gary Gensler have until March 2025 to decide about Hashdex's proposed dual crypto ETF. Credit: Darren Joseph
  • Hashdex filed for a dual Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF
  • If approved in its current form, it could form the basis for a crypto index.
  • Hashdex has already issued multiple crypto index funds in Brazil.

A new kind of crypto exchange-traded fund may see the light.

Crypto asset manager Hashdex has filed a dual Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Right now, spot Bitcoin ETFs allow investors to bet on the performance of Bitcoin through their brokerage accounts.

And the spot Ethereum ETFs, expected this summer, will do the same for Ether.

But the Hashdex dual fund, if approved, would enable investors to gain exposure to the two biggest cryptocurrencies by market value as a whole, without worrying about which one will outperform.

The move “makes a lot of sense,” Bloomberg Intelligence ETF analyst James Seyffart said in a post.

Seyffart also noted that the application contained language that would allow Hashdex to add other cryptocurrencies to the fund down the line, if the SEC decides to approve them.

That would turn the fund into a kind of crypto index.

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Hashdex has already issued multiple crypto index funds in Brazil.

Its Nasdaq crypto index contains Bitcoin, Ethereum, and nine other coins — Solana, Ripple, Cardano, Chainlink, Litecoin, Polygon, Avalanche, Uniswap, and Polkadot.

Bitcoin accounts for 65% of that fund, Ethereum for 25%, and Solana 4.6%. The other tokens have weightings of less than 1% each.

Hashdex also sports a DeFi index fund, a web3 index fund, and a metaverse index fund — each with at least a dozen cryptocurrencies.

“Bringing something like this to the US makes complete sense as a future goal,” Seyffart said.

Hashdex is in the running, alongside eight other issuers, to launch a spot Ethereum ETF.

It also converted its Bitcoin futures fund into a spot Bitcoin ETF in March.

The SEC has until March 2025 to respond to the dual fund application.

Tom Carreras is a markets correspondent at DL News. Got a tip about Bitcoin ETFs and the Fed? Reach out at tcarreras@dlnews.com.