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Forget Winklevoss ETF, here are alternative Exchange Traded Bitcoin backed Instruments to invest

Second Week of March witnessed heavy drama in terms of Bitcoin price and swaying fundamentals thanks to Winklevoss ETF that was pending approval. The SEC set the date of verdict on 10th March, before which the Bitcoin prices rallied anticipating the ETF approval. Nevertheless, Securities and Exchanges Commission decided to reject the proposal owing to the risks the Bitcoin markets possess in terms of hacks, security and the irregularities in monitoring. Nevertheless Winklevoss brothers are persistent over the ETF as few Bitcoin based instruments that are being actively traded over various markets have set the precedent. Let’s delve deep into what these instruments are and how they are faring:

Bitcoin ETI:

 

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Europe has been the forerunner in the standardization of the cryptocurrency assets and providing them a platform that is comparable to mainstream assets. A bitcoin backed Exchange Traded Note (ETN) was approved in 2015 in Sweden followed by the approval of a Bitcoin Exchange Traded Instrument (ETI) which was approved in Gilbraltar. The ETI enables indiviudals to invest in institutional instrument that is representative of digital currency. The ETI trades under the ticker ‘BTCETI’ and is approved by Gilbraltar Stock Exchange. The instrument was also approved by Germany’s Deutsche Borse and has found its place in special investment vehicles (SIV).

XBT Provider:

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XBT provider is a publicly traded Bitcoin fund exclusively for Europe. It is designed to track the movements of its underlying asset which is Bitcoin in this case. The fund offers Tracker one(ticker: COINXBT) and Tracker EUR (ticker:COINXBE) in the form of an Exchange Traded Note (ETN). The fund investors have enjoyed good and consistent profits over the period of XBT Provider’s growth.

Bitcoin Investment Trust:

 

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‘Bitcoin Investment Trust’ was launched in 2013 by Barry Silbert, is an open ended trust that is invested exclusively in bitcoin and derives its value solely from the price of bitcoin. It enables accredited investors, with annual incomes greater than $200,000 or assets of more than $1 million, to gain exposure to the price movement of bitcoin for a minimum investment of $25,000 without the challenges of buying and securely storing bitcoin. The price of GBTC shares roughly account for 10% of Bitcoin price and hence people wouldn’t be directly exposed to the risk of Bitcoin. It also gives you additional tax benefits apart from the reduced exposure.

Did Bitcoin finally slay the dragon?

Just a couple of months ago, China was a major fundamental driving factor for cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin price fluctuation is a flagship example of how one of the world’s biggest economies can manipulate the markets at will. Whether what has transpired was helpful or hindering for Bitcoin growth is debatable, it surely did have staggering effects on the cryptocurrency’s interesting journey. With PBOC’s intervention in the activities of major Chinese exchanges for the past three months, Bitcoin prices have been experiencing heavy volatility. But after Bitcoin markets took repeated blows, finally when the Chinese Bitcoin exchanges announced ban on withdrawals for a month, the price drop impact was relatively lower than expected. But it is evident that the prices sustained because the volumes were manifested elsewhere. Let’s dive deep into how adoption has beaten Chinese supremacy in Bitcoin markets:

The Chinese grip:

 

For a long time, China has had good control over Bitcoin with over 96% of Bitcoin volumes coming from China. With PBOC’s policies of devaluation of Yuan to increase the return on the imports, investors looked up to Bitcoin as a hedging instrument. Also, automated trading dominates the Chinese volumes owing to the zero transaction fees. With PBOC’s restriction and tightening grip over the activities of the exchange, things looked ominous for Bitcoin’s bullishness. But before China could do further damage, things stabilized and the prices regained traction.

The adoption and the towering expectations:

 

With exchanges shutting down withdrawals, there was a significant drop in volumes. This was immediately covered by the new found heavy adoption in Japan at merchant and institutional level. Bitcoin legislation in Japan turned favorable with the abolishment of 8% sales tax that attracted Chinese automated traders immediately after the exchanges levied transaction fee. With realistic policies and good regulations, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and the Philippines are handling increasing volumes easily and effectively. The start of 2017 marked a tectonic shift in the Bitcoin ecosystem. China’s authority over Bitcoin slipped away with increasing and probing regulations. This manifested in other Bitcoin markets which reflects the currency’s growth.

The prices are mooning owing to the speculations over Winklevoss ETF. If the ETF is approved we can surely see the currency sky rocketing by mid 2017.