Key Insights
- The London Stock Exchange has set May 28th as the launch date for trading crypto ETNs
- The ETNs will initially only be available to institutional and professional investors
- It comes as demand grows for regulated crypto investment vehicles
LONDON (MarketsXplora) – The London Stock Exchange (LSE) on Monday announced a May 28 launch date for trading cryptocurrency exchange-traded notes (ETNs), providing clarity for issuers seeking to offer products tracking bitcoin and ether.
The LSE set the start date about two weeks after announcing it would accept applications for listing crypto ETNs, giving prospective issuers time to prepare required documentation and meet listing qualifications laid out by Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
“It will also enable those issuers planning on admitting securities on the launch date, time to prepare documentation to establish a Crypto ETN programme which will require a base prospectus to be approved by the FCA,” the LSE said in a market notice.
ETNs are debt securities tracking an underlying asset, allowing investors to trade instruments mirroring the performance of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ether on the LSE’s securities markets.
However, the exchange specified the crypto ETN products will initially only be available to institutional and professional investors meeting certain criteria.
The move comes as investor demand surges for exposure to digital assets like bitcoin through regulated vehicles. Crypto exchange-traded funds launched in the United States in January now hold over $54 billion in assets under management, according to data provider The Block.
For retail investors in Britain unable to access U.S. bitcoin ETFs, the crypto ETNs could offer a new way to gain exposure through traditional stock exchanges, though likely at higher costs versus ETFs.
Crytpo advocates have pushed for wider availability of exchange-traded products after a bumpy introduction, with several false starts globally due to regulatory hurdles and market volatility concerns.