Grayscale Claims Bragging Rights for First Spot Bitcoin ETF to Begin Trading

Grayscale, the manager of GBTC, is claiming bragging rights for being the first of the newly approved crop of spot bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to begin trading, a representative for the firm said on Thursday.

“I am happy to confirm that GBTC started pre-trading at 4 am EST this morning,” Grayscale’s head of comms Jennifer Rosenthal said via email.

For full coverage of bitcoin ETFs, click here.

Grayscale’s conversion of its $27 billion bitcoin trust into an ETF was finally approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday, one of many applicants approved by the U.S. markets regulator for the first time marking a historic milestone for the cryptocurrency industry.

GBTC, which is priced at $40.496 in pre-trading on the NYSE Arca, has a markedly higher fee than its competitors, charging investors 1.5%, whereas the rest are charging in the range of 0.2%-0.9%. Grayscale appears to be relying on the head start of its $27 billion in assets giving it a competitive advantage against the pack.

Amongst the other ETFs approved on Wednesday, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) is also available for trading in pre-market, up more than 25% at $27.54 at the time of writing.

UPDATE (Jan. 11, 11:30 UTC): Adds details on GBTC pricing, IBIT premium.