BITCOIN

Net inflow of 1 Bitcoin? Australian Bitcoin spot ETF "IBTC" had a dismal debut on its first day of trading

2024/6/5

Australia has previously had two exchange-traded products (ETPs) offering spot trading, but Monochrome still launched IBTC as a "spot ETF directly holding Bitcoin." However, judging from its performance on the first day of listing, it seems to have made a lot of noise but with little impact.

Bloomberg: Australia's largest stock exchange ASX will list a Bitcoin spot ETF by the end of the year

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Australia's Bitcoin Spot ETF Launched

The Bitcoin Spot ETF IBTC, launched by Australia-based Monochrome Asset Management, officially went live on the Cboe Australia exchange on June 4th. In fact, Australia already has two exchange-traded products (ETPs) providing exposure to cryptocurrency assets on the Cboe Australia exchange, but these ETPs do not directly hold Bitcoin.

Monochrome emphasizes that this product is Australia's first and only Bitcoin spot ETF. Their announcement states:

Prior to the launch of IBTC, Australian investors could only invest in Bitcoin indirectly or through offshore Bitcoin ETFs, neither of which benefitted from the investor protection rules under Australia's financial services licensing AFSL regime. IBTC is the first and only ETP authorized under the crypto asset licensing category.

Issuing an ETF in Australia requires approval from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the exchange. Jeff Yew, CEO of Monochrome Asset Management, stated:

This is in line with Monochrome's mission to prioritize investor protection by providing a secure, compliant, and direct path to participate in the revolutionary crypto space.