HK Bitcoin, Ether crypto ETFs raise US$79 million in shadow of FTX crisis

A PAIR of Hong Kong exchange-traded funds (ETFs) investing in Bitcoin and Ether futures raised $79 million as the city pushes ahead with a plan to become a crypto hub even as the sector globally reels from the FTX collapse.

The CSOP Bitcoin Futures and CSOP Ether Futures ETFs, due to be listed later on Friday (Dec 16), achieved US$59 million and US$20 million of initial investment respectively, according to a statement from issuer CSOP Asset Management. 

Billed as Asia’s first listed Bitcoin and Ether futures ETFs, the products offer the region a regulated environment for access to contracts traded on the CME Group platform, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.

Hong Kong earlier this year laid out a plan to become a top Asian crypto hub offering legalised retail trading and digital-asset ETFs, seeking to restore the city’s credentials as a financial centre. The territory seems to be staying the course after indicating that recent crises show why investors would embrace a rule book offering transparency, compliance and investor protection.

Crypto exchange-traded products rocketed in popularity during 2021’s boom in token prices. But demand withered as digital assets tumbled into a rout and crypto firms like Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX slid into bankruptcy.

A gauge of the top 100 tokens has tumbled more than 60 per cent this year, compared with a less than 20 per cent decline in global stocks over the same period. BLOOMBERG