Fidelity Looking to Launch Bitcoin ETF

The fund still needs to be approved by the SEC

By
Elana Dure
Elana Dure
Full Bio
Elana Duré is a markets writer for Investopedia. She covered shareholder activism as a reporter at Reorg and Activist Insight and her work has been published in The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and The Jerusalem Post.
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Published March 25, 2021

Fidelity Investments has announced plans to launch an exchange traded fund (ETF) that tracks the price of Bitcoin. 

FD Funds Management, a subsidiary of Fidelity, on Wednesday submitted an S-1 filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) outlining its intention to financially back the ETF. In the past year, the price of Bitcoin has jumped 687% to about $52,790. 

The ETF, called Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust, will track the cryptocurrency through the Fidelity Bitcoin Index, which takes spot prices from various Bitcoin markets, including popular exchanges. 

This is the latest move by Fidelity to bring cryptocurrencies to mainstream finance. The money manager previously experimented with mining cryptocurrency, allowed clients to donate digital assets to charities, and launched plans to store and trade Bitcoin for professional investors. 

However, the ETF still needs to be approved by the SEC, which previously rejected applications for nine Bitcoin ETFs in 2018. The regulator previously argued that the market was not ready for a Bitcoin ETF yet. But last week, the SEC acknowledged a Bitcoin ETF proposal from VanEck.

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  1. Securities and Exchange Commission. "Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust - S-1 Filing."

  2. The Wall Street Journal. "Fidelity Plans to Launch Bitcoin ETF."

  3. CNBC. "Fidelity to launch bitcoin ETF as investment giant builds its digital asset business."

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