Tag: Fidelity

BlackRock Amends Bitcoin ETF Prospectus, BTC Prices Rise: Are Bulls Getting Started?

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BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, has amended its prospectus for the spot Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) with the stringent United States Securities and Exchange (SEC), according to a report on October 18.

BlackRock Revises Bitcoin ETF Application, Heavyweights Interested

Specific changes made on their iShares Bitcoin Trust submitted by the asset manager include acknowledging the intense competition in the race for approval. The applicant said there was no assurance that their product would find instant market acceptance and scale due to competition should it be endorsed. They also explained its pricing structure and reporting mechanism.

Changes to its prospectus come roughly a month after BlackRock re-submitted its application in July 2023. Then, the applicant divulged the monitoring agreement they had sealed with Nasdaq and Coinbase Custody. BlackRock now joins Ark Invest and Fidelity, who also had to make changes for clarity.

As it is, Fidelity is the other notable applicant. The financial institution has been pro-Bitcoin over the years. In 2020, Fidelity added the option for corporate clients to invest in Bitcoin through their 401(k) retirement plans.

This year, Fidelity introduced a Bitcoin trading platform for individual investors. In June 2023, Fidelity refiled paperwork with the SEC for its Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust. However, Fidelity also had to revise its application, stating the risks associated with the complex Bitcoin derivative product.

Is A BTC And Crypto Rally Inevitable?

The crypto community is upbeat and expects the SEC to approve multiple spot Bitcoin ETF applications submitted by the top brass in traditional finance in the next few months, probably in 2024. However, the exact timing remains tentative, a cause of anxiety in the community.

A spot Bitcoin ETF will directly track Bitcoin prices, allowing investors to trade its listed shares on a regulated exchange. Subsequently, this would make it much easier for clients, especially institutions, to gain exposure to Bitcoin without necessarily buying and storing coins. A former BlackRock executive predicted the Bitcoin market to attract at least $150 billion in three years once the SEC authorizes one or several products.

On October 19, Bitcoin prices briefly rallied above $28,500, aligning with gains of October 16. Still, whether the spike could be tied to BlackRock amending its prospectus or the general optimism in the broader crypto and Bitcoin community is unclear.

Bitcoin price on October 19| Source: BTCUSDT on Binance, TradingView

The false news of the SEC approving the first Bitcoin ETF early this week forced prices higher. The coin soared above $30,000 at its peaks before cooling off to spot rates.

Feature image from Canva, chart from TradingView

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Dalmas Ngetich

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October 19, 2023
Transactions: Citizens selects embedded payments provider Wisetack | Bank Automation News

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Citizens Financial Group selected embedded pay-over-time provider Wisetack Thursday for its new consumer financing platform, Citizens Pay. Citizens Pay will use Wisetack’s existing connections to merchants and software-as-a-service integration capabilities to offer customers the ability to finance home improvement purchases with low interest and individualized timetables, according to a news release. “Working with Wisetack, we’re […]

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Vaidik Trivedi and Victor Swezey

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June 21, 2023
Bitcoin Surges Past $30,000 For First Time In Months

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Bitcoin rose sharply Wednesday and surpassed $30,000 for the first time in months, continuing a days-long increase in the cryptocurrency’s price, despite economic uncertainty and a regulatory crackdown on some crypto exchanges.

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June 21, 2023
Fidelity Begins Opening Retail Bitcoin Trading Accounts

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Fidelity, one of the world’s largest financial services providers, has officially started opening retail bitcoin trading accounts.

The development comes after their announcement of a wait list previously this month. According to a report by The Block, certain users, presumably those on the wait list, received an email detailing the release, which stated that “The wait is over.”

Fidelity has been active in the bitcoin industry for some time — according to the company website, it began mining bitcoin in 2014. In addition, it launched a spot bitcoin ETF in Canada in December of 2021.

The financial services giant’s interest in bitcoin has not come without criticism, having been the subject of U.S. senators’ scrutiny for its offering of a 401k plan that allows users to allocate to bitcoin.

The same criticism has resurfaced again recently, from the same group of senators, who stated in their latest letter, “Fidelity Investments has opted to expand beyond traditional finance and delve into the highly unstable and increasingly risky digital asset market.”

Despite these warnings, Fidelity appears to be diving headfirst into bitcoin, as interest in bitcoin amongst the traditional finance community continues to grow. It should be noted, the move comes at a particularly interesting time, given recent developments surrounding the collapse of FTX and the heightened attention being paid to volatility in the industry.

With industry perception perched so precariously, the actions of behemoths like Fidelity will almost certainly have ramifications for the future of bitcoin regulation.

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BtcCasey

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November 28, 2022
Fidelity Opens Wait List For Commission-Free Bitcoin Trading

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Financial services behemoth Fidelity Investments has opened access to a wait list for its bitcoin trading offering, according to its website. Users can express interest in the product, offered by its subsidiary Fidelity Digital Assets, by signing up on the firm’s web page. The product will waive commission fees, an attempt to compete with popular cryptocurrency exchanges such as Binance that have recently launched zero-fee trading. Fidelity, however, will charge a 1% spread fee.

Fidelity has for the past year taken longer strides on the cryptocurrency sector. The asset manager, one of the world’s largest with over $4.5 trillion in assets under management as of September 2022, offers institutional products through Fidelity Digital Assets, including a spot bitcoin ETF in Canada, but the firm’s new moves would cater to the retail investor group.

Now, investors get a glimpse of that future as Fidelity opens up the waiting list for the offering. In addition to trading, the asset manager will also offer custody services for customers’ bitcoin holdings as it seeks to capitalize on the learning curve involved in self-custody.

While U.S. citizens might find it convenient to invest in bitcoin through Fidelity’s offering, the inability to withdraw funds to a self-custodial wallet might push some investors away. As a digital native peer-to-peer currency system, Bitcoin’s true value proposition is only achievable through proper self-custody, which enables independence and freedom. In any case, Fidelity’s offering surely has a market to target — and a growing one — as many in America start getting curious about and demanding some exposure to BTC.

Historically, users have for the most part leveraged cryptocurrency-specific exchanges for their bitcoin buys. However, banks and other financial institutions have grown in awareness as they saw millions if not billions of U.S. dollars flying out of customers’ checking accounts and into the likes of Coinbase and Gemini. In a bid to capture some of that capital, some traditional finance firms have quickly pivoted to launch bitcoin investing products of their own.

In addition to Fidelity, BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, also recently dipped its toes into the Bitcoin market. BlackRock’s plans were first heard of in February 2022, but it wouldn’t be until August that the $10 trillion AUM firm would launch its bitcoin trading product. BlackRock also launched a spot bitcoin private trust in that same month.

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Namcios

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November 3, 2022