Investment Giant Vanguard Blocks Clients From Buying Bitcoin ETFs
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Vanguard, one of the largest asset managers in the world, is preventing customers from buying the newly approved bitcoin ETFs.
An attempt to invest in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) or Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) via a Vanguard retirement brokerage account generated a “trade cannot be completed” warning.
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“Buy orders are not currently accepted for this security,” the message said. “Securities may be unavailable for purchase at Vanguard due to a number of variables including regulatory restrictions, corporate actions, or various trading and/or settlement limitations.”
A Vanguard spokesperson could not be reached by press time. The Block, citing a Vanguard spokesperson, reported that Vanguard has no plan to permit buying of bitcoin ETFs, citing their high volatility.
Vanguard’s unfriendliness contrasts with the embrace of bitcoin ETF by some of the company’s largest rivals, including BlackRock, Fidelity and Invesco, which have created bitcoin ETFs that started trading Thursday. They won U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission permission to do so on Wednesday.
Charles Schwab, another brokerage, confirmed Thursday that it’s letting customers trade bitcoin ETFs.
Edited by Nick Baker.
