BIT Asset Management AG ("BIT AM") announces that the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has approved the Bitcoin fund ETF (code: BBIT). The company stated that, as confirmed in the FINMA announcement, this is the first exchange-traded fund in Switzerland that directly invests in Bitcoin and is currently also the only spot Bitcoin ETF in Europe.
The fund is expected to start trading on the Swiss Stock Exchange SIX in November.
Bitcoin Fund ETF （ BBIT ）
Spot Bitcoin ETF is designed to track the price of Bitcoin and can be traded through regular securities accounts. It directly holds Bitcoin, rather than futures or derivatives. The company claims that this structure has helped Bitcoin enter mainstream investment portfolios in the United States; in the U.S., BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust ( IBIT ) as well as another 10 spot Bitcoin ETF were launched in January 2024.
The company stated that most Bitcoin products currently listed in Europe are exchange-traded products ( ETP ), which are debt instruments carrying issuer risk; whereas the Bitcoin fund ETF is a Swiss collective investment scheme. Its assets are separate from those of the fund management company and are held in isolation for the investors. This fund is open to Swiss retail investors, not limited to qualified investors only.
BIT Group CEO John Ge stated: "Switzerland has established itself as a leading hub for digital assets, boasting a strong financial industry, a clear regulatory environment, and an innovative ecosystem. For BIT Group, this makes Switzerland the natural choice for our ongoing international expansion. Launching Switzerland's first Bitcoin ETF is an important milestone for us, reflecting our long-term commitment to the Swiss market and our ambition to connect traditional finance with emerging technologies."
BIT Asset Management CEO Dominik Oggenfuss stated: "Through BBIT, we are committed to creating a genuine Swiss Bitcoin ETF. From fund management and custody to listing on the Swiss Stock Exchange SIX, everything is carried out in Switzerland. Investors can directly obtain Bitcoin exposure through Swiss investment funds approved by FINMA and benefit from the regulatory oversight and investor protection provided by Switzerland's mature collective investment plan framework."
Oggenfuss also indicates that: 'Investors can now access Bitcoin through regular Swiss bank accounts, while enjoying Swiss fund governance, independent custody, and daily transparent disclosure of their holdings.'
About BIT Asset Management
BIT Asset Management AG is headquartered in Zurich and is a collective asset management institution supervised by FINMA. It is also a wholly-owned subsidiary of BIT. The company was formerly known as Crypto Finance ( Asset Management ) AG. In 2024, it was fully acquired by the group and renamed Matrixport Asset Management AG, and then adopted its current name. The company provides regulated funds, exchange-traded products, actively managed certificates, and entrusted asset management services, connecting traditional finance with digital assets. The company is led by CEO Dominik Oggenfuss.
About BIT
BIT was established in 2019, formerly known as Matrixport. It is a one-stop digital asset platform headquartered in Singapore that provides services for trading, investing, payments, custody, and the tokenization of real-world assets. Through its subsidiaries, BIT holds trust or corporate service provider licenses in Hong Kong, major payment institution licenses in Singapore, and the license of a collective asset manager, FINMA, in Switzerland. BIT operates in the UK as a designated representative, is registered as a money service business in the US, and is also a member of the Swiss self-regulatory organization VQF.
