(Reuters) – Star stock picker Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest has given its brand name to a new bitcoin futures ETF that will invest in cryptocurrency futures contracts and trade on the CBOE BZX Exchange, a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission showed.
The proposed ETF, called ARK 21Shares Bitcoin Futures Strategy, with the ticker symbol ARKA, is an attempt by the fund managers to take advantage of the surge in cryptocurrency this year.
However, the SEC has yet to approve a bitcoin ETF. Other asset managers and exchanges such as Fidelity, CBOE Global Markets and Nasdaq are also waiting for the green light to launch ETFs tracking the digital currency.
Philadelphia-based Alpha Architect is the adviser for the fund and 21Shares, a cryptocurrency asset manager, is the sub-adviser. Wood’s firm will provide marketing support for the proposed ETF, according to the filing.
Wood, whose flagship Innovation ETF was the top-performing U.S. equity fund last year, has said that bitcoin will rally to $500,000 and her investment firm holds about $1.55 billion worth of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase shares spread across three funds.
Bitcoin touched $58,550 on Thursday, its highest level since May 2021 after jumping 30% in October, building on a rally after U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell last month said the central bank had no intention of banning cryptocurrencies.
(Reporting by Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Bernard Orr)
