Hong Kong VSFG eyes Q1 2024 for Spot Bitcoin ETF introduction
Hong Kong is getting closer to launching a spot bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF), with a local company reportedly planning to launch such a fund in the coming months.
Venture Smart Financial Holdings (VSFG), a Hong Kong-based financial services firm, expects to begin investing in ETFs in the first quarter of 2024, according to a Bloomberg report.
“This is a market with huge potential,” said Brian Chan, head of VSFG's investment and product group, adding that the firm aims to reach $500 million in assets under management by the end of this year. The company is now said to be working on an application with the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to launch a Bitcoin ETF space.
The news comes a few weeks after the SFC officially announced in December 2023 that the agency is ready to accept Bitcoin ETF applications from authorized and licensed institutions in Hong Kong.
According to local reports, at least 10 fund managers were preparing to launch crypto-based ETFs in Hong Kong. RJ Ke, a researcher at Ethereum scaling startup Taiko, reported that following the successful launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States on January 11, Hong Kong will accelerate Bitcoin ETF applications in the coming months.
Related: Hong Kong's HashKey Reaches Unicorn Status After $100M Funding
Some companies that have been offering futures-based crypto ETFs in Hong Kong may be among the Bitcoin ETF filers. Samsung Asset Management – which launched the Samsung Bitcoin Futures ETF in 2023 – said it “doesn't rule out exploring the possibility of launching a spot ETF”.
Cointelegraph reached out to VSFG for comment on its plans to launch the Spot Bitcoin ETF in Q4 2024, but had not yet received a response at the time of publication.
Magazine: HashKey is now a unicorn, as Tether hits back at the United Nations, no Singapore Bitcoin ETF: Asia Express
