BlackRock announces plans to launch a bitcoin ETF

The biggest asset manager in the world, BlackRock, filed paperwork on Thursday to launch an exchange-traded fund (ETF) for bitcoin.

As the asset class is subject to intense regulatory scrutiny, the ETF would enable investors to gain exposure to cryptocurrencies.

According to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Coinbase Custody will serve as the custodian for BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (SEC). Applications for spot bitcoin ETFs have yet to receive approval from the American regulator.

A spot bitcoin private trust was introduced by BlackRock last year for institutional clients in the US.

The move comes at a time when the global cryptocurrency industry has been caught in the crosshairs of the U.S. securities regulator for alleged violations of securities laws.

In high-profile lawsuits that reverberated throughout the digital assets industry earlier this month, the regulator sued prominent exchanges Coinbase and Binance.

Joshua Chu, the group chief risk officer for the blockchain technology companies XBE, Coinllectibles, and Marvion, suggested that the filing for a Bitcoin ETF by BlackRock, a reputable and long-standing asset management firm, could be viewed as a positive development in the quest for regulatory approval.

Moreover, he said, it demonstrated the public's interest in cryptocurrency's resilience.

The underlying market price of bitcoin would be tracked by a spot bitcoin ETF. An ETF, according to supporters, would expose investors to bitcoin without requiring them to buy it directly.

After the news was released, the price of bitcoin increased by 2%. On Friday, they were last at $25,506. In the past year, the biggest cryptocurrency has increased by 54%.

Early in the day, CoinDesk published plans for BlackRock's ETF.