Bitcoin hits the big time as ASIC approves crypto ETFs in Australia

<p>After years of waiting, Australians who want to invest in cryptocurrency assets without running the risk of directly buying coins will finally get their chance with the looming launch of a raft of crypto-focussed exchange traded products.</p> <p>Australia’s corporate regulator, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), has finally allowed for a range of cryptocurrency-related ETFs, which should see Bitcoin and Ethereum-backed investment funds trading on the ASX in the coming months.</p> <p>That move follows the launch of the first Bitcoin futures ETF in the US, after a protracted regulatory process, and the successful launch of a Canadian ETF earlier this year.</p> <p>The first local ETF out of the blocks on the ASX is likely to be Australian fund manager BetaShares, which has been signing up those interested in an exchange-traded product that consists of a range of global crypto companies.</p> <p>CRYP racing to get a listing</p> <p>Using the ASX ticker CRYP, the fund may be floated as early as this coming week and will offer exposures to a range of “pure-play” crypto companies with balance sheets that are deeply entrenched in crypto assets, along with diversified companies with a crypto focus.</p> <p>The new ASIC guidelines covering crypto exchange-traded products include a number of safeguards which should protect investors from some of the more serious scandals that have plagued the crypto industry.</p> <p>Strict guidelines for security</p> <p>Companies offering crypto ETF’s would need to agree to a set of best practice guidelines, including strict rules around asset custody, including the protection and storage of cryptocurrency private keys.</p> <p>Such keys would need to remain in cold storage and not connected to the internet with wallets in which the keys are stored are subject to “robust physical security practices”.</p> <p>Several backups will also need to be made and stored in geographically separate locations.</p> <p>Custodians for crypto assets will also be required t