Bitwise Unveils OWNB ETF to Monitor Institutional Bitcoin Holdings

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Bitwise has officially launched a new exchange-traded fund (ETF) designed to track companies that hold Bitcoin on their balance sheets. This ETF does not invest directly in Bitcoin itself, but rather, it provides exposure to corporations that include Bitcoin in their corporate treasuries, offering a unique investment opportunity for those looking to gain indirect exposure to the cryptocurrency through corporate holdings.

Bitwise Launches OWNB ETF to Track Corporate Bitcoin Holdings

In a significant development for the cryptocurrency space, Bitwise has received approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to launch a groundbreaking ETF focused on companies that hold Bitcoin. According to a recent statement, this new ETF will offer investors the opportunity to gain exposure to companies that own Bitcoin via an index strategy designed to track the corporate Bitcoin holders.

The fund, named the Bitwise Standard Corporations ETF, will be the first of its kind and will be listed under the ticker OWNB. To qualify for inclusion in the index, companies must meet specific criteria, one of which is owning at least 1,000 BTC. The holdings of each company within the index will be weighted based on the amount of Bitcoin they hold, with the largest individual holdings being capped at 20% to maintain diversification within the fund.

The ETF will assign an automatic weighting of 1.5% to companies that hold more than 1,000 BTC but whose holdings represent less than 33% of their total assets. The fund’s index will undergo quarterly rebalancing to adjust for any changes in the companies’ Bitcoin holdings. However, it’s important to note that the fund will not invest in Bitcoin directly or indirectly, offering investors exposure solely to companies with significant Bitcoin assets on their books.

ETF Strategy and Key Corporate Holdings

Bitwise’s ETF will track major companies like Strategy, MARA Holdings, Clean Spark, Riot Platforms, and Boyaa Interactive, which are notable for their substantial Bitcoin holdings. According to Bitwise, the OWNB ETF enables investors to gain exposure to a broad range of innovative, forward-thinking companies that are actively embracing Bitcoin as a treasury asset.

With more than 70 publicly traded companies collectively holding over 650,000 BTC across their balance sheets, the trend of corporate Bitcoin adoption is growing. Strategy, for instance, is looking to raise an additional $21 billion for Bitcoin purchases, and other companies are eager to join this trend of corporate Bitcoin holdings.

In addition to the OWNB ETF, Bitwise has recently filed an S-1 for a Aptos ETF and partnered with Maple Finance to offer on-chain credit solutions. The firm is also considering launching a Dogecoin ETF and has pledged to donate funds to support Bitcoin open-source development, underscoring its commitment to driving innovation in the cryptocurrency space.

This launch of the Bitwise ETF marks a significant step forward for cryptocurrency investments, providing a new way for investors to diversify their portfolios by gaining exposure to companies with major Bitcoin holdings. With a growing number of firms adding Bitcoin to their balance sheets, the outlook for corporate Bitcoin ETFs like OWNB looks promising as more investors look to benefit from the rise of digital assets within corporate treasuries.