The spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETF) applicants have gone on a lower fee slugfest as they look to attract investors to the hotly anticipated product. In an updated filing on Monday, several asset managers updated their fees in what were the final details of their applications prior to an expected launch by midweek.
Asset managers BlackRock and Ark Invest amended their portfolio fees today, with the former reducing its charges to 0.2% of net asset value for the first year. BlackRock would then charge investors 0.3% after the first year or when its ETF reaches $5 billion in assets.
Ark Invest also filed an amended fee, deciding to waive off charges for the first six months or until its ETF value gets to $1 billion. It would then add a fee of 0.25% after the aforementioned conditions are met.
The Investor Tussle Continues
BlackRock and Ark Invest join a host of other applicants to continue to devise moves to attract investors ahead of a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) decision on Wednesday. Having launched several ETF advertisements on different social media platforms, the asset managers have taken the slugfest to reduced fees to heighten competition further.
“This is a classic price war. How do you prove that your ETF is any better than anybody else’s? The only way you can compete is on price,” stated the faculty affiliate at Psaros Centre, James Angel.
Invesco had already filed to waive off fees for the first six months and charge investors 0.59% afterward or when its ETF reaches $5 billion in asset value. Last week, asset manager VanEck pledged an initial $10,000 donation and about 5% of its Bitcoin spot ETF profits to support Bitcoin core developer Brinks for at least ten years.
With analysts speculating that the Bitcoin spot ETF would attract billions of dollars into the crypto market, these asset managers are already looking to battle it out and gain a reasonable number of investors. However, an SEC decision is still on the way, even though the regulator seems more cooperative than it has been since the first filing years ago.
Bitcoin Regains $45k
Following the amended S-1 filing by BlackRock and Ark Invest on Monday, Bitcoin rallied to regain the $45,000 price after a sideways movement earlier in the day. The largest crypto asset has gained 2% in 24 hours, moving from as low as $43,200 early Monday to $45,000.
The SEC would decide on the ETFs by midweek. However, multiple reports have branded the approval a done deal, setting the odds of getting a positive response as high as 95%.
