Evolve’s Bitcoin ETF Filing Gets Approved by Canadian Regulators

Evolve Funds Group Inc., has gotten the approval of the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) to launch its bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) dubbed EBIT. The team says the new ETF is designed to provide investors with exposure to the daily price movement of the U.S. dollar price of bitcoin (BTC), according to a prospectus document dated February 12, 2021.

Canadian Regulators Greenlight Second Bitcoin ETF

In another exciting development for Canada’s cryptocurrency ecosystem, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) has approved the bitcoin exchange-traded fund filing of Evolve Funds Group Inc, barely two weeks after giving Purpose Investment Inc. the go-ahead to launch the world’s first physically settled bitcoin ETF. 

It will be recalled that on January 29, 2021, Evolve Groups Inc., one of Canada’s fastest-growing ETF providers with $1.6 billion in assets under management, filed a preliminary prospectus for its EBIT bitcoin ETF with the OSC, in a bid to make it easier for Canadians to jump onto the bitcoin bandwagon.

“Historically it has been difficult to gain exposure to bitcoin. EBIT aims to provide Canadian investors with a simple and effective way to access the price of bitcoin. Typically viewed as a non-correlated asset, bitcoin is gathering institutional interest and being viewed as an alternative to traditional investments, such as gold and a potential hedge against inflation,” declared Evolve at the time.

Canada Outpaces the U.S in Bitcoin Innovation

Fast-forward to February 12, 2021, and Evolve has now gotten the full backing of the OSC to execute its mission of providing Canadians with exposure to bitcoin, the fastest horse in the global financial ecosystem, via its physically-settled EBIT ETF.

Evolve wrote:

“The ETF’s investment objective is to provide Unitholders with exposure to the daily price movement of the U.S. dollar price of bitcoin while experiencing minimal tracking error by utilizing the benefits of the creation and redemption processes offered by the exchange-traded fund structure.”

While a good number of crypto-focused asset management firms in the neighbouring United State, including Grayscale, have launched bitcoin-linked investment products in recent times, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has, however, been reluctant to give any company its stamp of approval to roll out a bitcoin ETF, despite several attempts by highly reputed firms like VanEck and others.

Evolve has made it clear that its EBIT ETF, which will be available on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), will not seek exposure to bitcoin via derivatives products or futures contracts. Instead, it will purchase real BTC from its partner exchanges and store it directly in its cold wallet.

At press time, the price of bitcoin (BTC) is hovering around $51,470, with a market cap of $956 billion as seen on CoinMarketCap.