ProShares made history in the cryptocurrency market as the first-ever institution to debut a Bitcoin-related exchange-traded fund (ETF). Trading under the ticker BITO, ProShares Bitcoin futures ETF launched on the New York Stock Exchange on October 19 and recorded a milestone volume of $1 billion on the first day of trading.
The record attests to the significant demand for Bitcoin in the traditional market. Thus, we can expect more capital from traditional investors to flow into the Bitcoin market as more similar ETF launches in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, being the first company to tap into this demand, it’s worth learning about ProShares, the people behind it, and their path to launching the first Bitcoin futures ETF in the United States.
Based in the United States, ProShares is one of the leading exchange-traded products providers around the world. The company has been in business for about 15 years, with more than $66 billion in assets under management. ProFunds Group is the parent company of ProShares and was founded in 1997 by Louis Mayberg and Michael Sapir with $100,000.
Sapir currently heads the operations at ProShares as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), with a team of at least 150 employees according to their official LinkedIn profile. Other key players in the company include Ramesh Babu as Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Steven Schoffstall as Head of Product Management, Todd Johnson as Chief Investment Officer (CIO), Tim Coakley as Chief Financial Officer (CFO), and many others.
The path to BITO
A Bitcoin ETF is deemed an important investment product that can connect traditional investors to the leading cryptocurrency assets in a risk-mitigated manner, and although several companies have been pushing for one in the US over the past years, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) couldn’t approve of any application.
However, after SEC Chairman Gary Gensler revealed that futures-backed ETFs are likely to be approved easily because of the security it provides for investors, many companies had pivoted to that route, which led up to many Bitcoin futures ETFs underway. ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) reportedly began trading due to inaction by the SEC. The 75-day deadline for SEC to comment on the product elapsed on October 18, which meant BITO could be traded without SEC’s intervention.
“We believe a multitude of investors have been eagerly awaiting the launch of a bitcoin-linked ETF after years of efforts to launch one,” said ProShares CEO Michael L. Sapir.
Already, many brokers are trading BITO. Recently, we published an article highlighting the importance of BITO, which investors can trade, and also where to buy it. Since the ETF launched, the price of Bitcoin has been on the rise. Yesterday, BTC reached another all-time high of $66,990 on Binance.
