- Jacobi FT Wilshire Bitcoin Spot ETF is Europe’s first.
- BTC price remained essentially unchanged, while the U.S. is still to approve.
Europe beat the United States, as the Netherlands became the first to opt for Bitcoin Spot ETF. Strangely, BTC price remained unchanged. Jacobi Asset Management recently launched Europe’s first Bitcoin Spot ETF on August 16, 2023, as Jacobi FT Wilshire Bitcoin ETF. This development marks a significant transition in the European crypto industry.
Europe Pioneered Bitcoin Spot ETF Acceptance
Though this approval beats the United States in the Bitcoin ETF race, the launch was initially schedule for July 2022 on Euronext Amsterdam. But the market instability at the time and events like Terra Ecosystem Collapse and FTX-saga caused the authorities to move the launch date to August 2023.
The Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) is overseen by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC) and trades with the ticker, BCOIN. The regulatory body will have to ensure that the ETF complies with the existing rules of the European Union. Flow Traders are given the responsibility to make market-making decisions.
Jane Street and DRW became the part of authorized participants. During the announcement, Martin Bendall, CEO of Jacobi Asset Management, said that the Jacobi FT Wilshre Bitcoin ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) boasts of representing the world’s first Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SDFR) Article 8 decarbonized digital asset fund.
Jacobi’s partnership with Zumo helps implement verifiable, regulated, and built-in Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) solutions. This scenario allows institutional investors to access the benefits of Bitcoin while still meeting the strict demands of Enviornmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) norms.
Adding to Bendall’s statement, Kirsteen Harrison, Environmental Manager at Zumo, referred decarbonization of crypto as the most pressing issue of the digital asset industry. It should be known that Bitcoin is slandered as being highly energy intensive and bad for the environment. Also, there is increasing pressure on all the crypto firms to decarbonize.
Bitcoin Price Remains Unchanged, Why?
The market was under the presumption that the emergence of Europe’s first Bitcoin spot ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) would significantly impact the BTC price. But it largely remains unaffected. At press time, BTC is trading at $28,482.91, dropping 2.27% in 24 hours and 3.44% in the last seven days. Its market cap fell 2.25% to $554 Billion while volume surged 22.55% to $16.67 Billion.
Bitcoin Spot ETF allows retail and institutional investors to invest funds in Bitcoin without buying real Bitcoin and worrying about other factors. On July 13, 2023, the world’s biggest asset manager. BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF request, was accept by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink once referred Bitcoin ETFs to become a means to “democratize crypto.” Since it would allow a broader range of investors to get exposure to the crypto market, it also allows investing in crypto without buying crypto as buying digital assets has been a significant entry barrier for most investors.
Analysts could not conclude why the BTC price remained unchanged after Europe allowed Bitcoin to spot ETF. Most of them argue that if and when the United States approves it, the BTC price might show some movement. Market analysts have already hinted that the SEC might accept multiple Bitcoin Spot ETF requests simultaneously.
Experts also think it might be too early to assess the effect of ETFs on BTC price. United States is yet to approve the numerous requests pending with the SEC. Moreover, judging the results based on a single Bitcoin ETF approval might not be ideal. Bitcoin Spot ETF’s effect on the BTC price should be accessed after the SEC accepts the requests and multiple players are in the arena.