Asset manager GraniteShares files for RIOT, MARA, MSTR, and HOOD ETFs

GraniteShares, a fast-growing asset manager with over $10 billion, has filed for new crypto-linked exchange-traded funds.

On Friday, Dec. 20, the New York-based firm filed for new leveraged ETFs to track companies like Riot Platforms, Marathon Digital, MicroStrategy and Robinhood. 

GraniteShares files for new crypto-related ETFs

Marathon Digital and Riot Platforms are the two biggest Bitcoin (BTC) mining companies. They are also the third and second-biggest Bitcoin holders, with 44,394 and 17,429 coins in their balance sheet.

MicroStrategy holds the most coins at 439,000, while Robinhood serves as a major platform for crypto and stock investments. 

These funds will be both 2x long and 2x short. 2x long ETFs will generate two times the daily returns of the respective stocks. For example, GraniteShares 2x Long RIOT ETF will rise by 2% when Riot Platform’s stock rises by 1%.

These leveraged ETFs have become highly popular this year as the crypto and stock markets have soard to a record high. Investors love them because they often have strong returns when stocks are in an uptrend. 

The T-Rex 2x Long MSTR Daily Target fund, whose ticker is MSTU, has attracted over $1.8 billion in assets under management. Similarly, the Defiance Daily Target 2X Long MSTR ETF, with ticker symbol MSTX has accumulated $1.8 billion in assets. 

These funds have done better than MicroStrategy in the past three months. MicroStrategy’s stock has risen by 150%, while the MSTU and MSTX shares are up by 308% and 253% in the same period. 

However, the risk is that their performance is usually worse than that of the underlying stock in a bear market. MicroStrategy stock dropped by 24% in the last 30 days, while the MSTU and MSTX have fallen by over 50% in the same period. 

The same performance has happened among other leveraged ETFs over time. For example, the ProShares UltraPro QQQ ETF, which generates 3x returns of the Nasdaq 100 index, dropped by 79% in 2022 as the underlying asset fell by 32%. It closed Friday at $30.75, down 2.54%.

Other companies have launched other types of cryptocurrency-focused ETFs. In addition to leveraged funds, YieldMax has launched covered call ETFs on several crypto companies. It launched the Coin Option Income, MARA Option Income, and MSTR Option Income ETFs.

These ETFs use the covered call options strategies to provide monthly income to their investors. In a covered call option, the fund invests in the stocks, sells call options, and receives premiums, which it distributes to investors monthly.