BlackRock set the ball rolling with its application for a spot Bitcoin exchange traded fund (ETF) last week, triggering four fresh filings from top investment managers to list similar products on U.S. exchanges.
Financial services firm Valkyrie Investments is the latest to apply for a spot Bitcoin ETF, filing an updated proposal for the product with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday.
The firm altered the intended exchange from NYSE Arca to NASDAQ and changed the fund’s ticker symbol to “BRRR.”
Gotta love the ticker. Also, have to think there is a reasonable chance that this fund *could* be second to market after BlackRock *IF* BlackRock is approved (that's a big "if"!) Because it would be listed on the same exchange filing for the 19b-4 rule change. pic.twitter.com/NIQF7e4Ysp
— James Seyffart (@JSeyff) June 21, 2023
Industry watchers commented that the ticker’s name was likely a play on the popular meme “Money Printer Go Brrr,” which takes aim at the Federal Reserve’s strategy of increasing the money supply to curb interest rates and lower borrowing costs.
Like BlackRock, Valkyrie’s Bitcoin ETF would use the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate (BRRNY) to price the value of Bitcoin.
Valkyrie already has a fair amount of skin in the game when it comes to digital asset-related ETFs. The firm launched the Valkyrie Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BTF), the second ever Bitcoin Futures ETF in October 2021, and runs the Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF which has the ticker “WGMI.”
Earlier this week, Invesco and WisdomTree also reapplied for spot Bitcoin ETFs with the SEC. The renewed optimism in a potential Bitcoin ETF has sparked a rally in the price of Bitcoin itself, which surged 21% in the last week. The leading digital asset was trading at $30,100 at the time of writing.
