Will Peck, head of digital assets at WisdomTree, expects exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that hold diversified baskets of cryptocurrencies to fill a big gap out there in the approaching years.
“It looks like this will likely be one among the following waves of adoption,” Peck told Cointelegraph on Wednesday on the Bridge conference in New York City. “I believe it fills a necessity,” he added.
Peck explained that while many latest investors now understand the concept of Bitcoin (BTC), they often find it difficult to evaluate the “next 20 assets.” He said a multi-asset cryptocurrency basket gives them exposure to the sector while mitigating the “idiosyncratic risk” of investing in individual tokens.
Will Peck says index ETF investors will support the technology
“We've talked about cryptocurrencies as an asset class, but really it's a technology and the underlying return drivers of every of those tokens are literally quite different, even in the event that they're generally correlated with one another simply because that's where the market is,” he explained.
Will Peck spoke to Cointelegraph on the Bridge conference in New York City on Wednesday. Source: Cointelegraph
It comes as several crypto index ETFs have been launched this 12 months. Most recently, asset manager 21Shares launched two crypto index ETFs on Thursday which are governed by the Investment Company Act of 1940.
Just a couple of months earlier, on September 25, asset manager Hashdex expanded its Crypto Index US ETF to incorporate XRP (XRP), SOL (SOL) and Stellar (XLM) after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) modified general listing rules.
Peck said the timing of a broader launch of crypto index ETFs is “difficult to predict accurately,” but suggested it could be inevitable given the easy utility of a product that gives such exposure.
Peck expects a surge in latest crypto ETF launches as ETF issuers compete for early benefits, which he says could undermine the concept an ETF mechanically signals that the cryptocurrency token has authority or credibility.
The success of the Bitcoin ETF “exceeded” Will Peck’s expectations
“I believe there's going to be a shift, like while you said five years ago, 'Oh, if something has an ETF like Bitcoin gets one, possibly it's the primary, it has to have some sort of institutional stamp of approval, like approval,” he said.
“I don't think the SEC should necessarily be like that, a performance-driven regulator on this regard, right? And it's really going to come back right down to customers making the appropriate decisions with their very own money,” Peck added.
Meanwhile, Peck said the “overall success” of spot Bitcoin ETFs since their launch in January 2024 has exceeded his expectations.
“It's remarkable to me how large the Bitcoin ETF categories are, crypto usually is one of the vital competitive parts of the US ETF market,” he said.
According to Farside, the products have accrued roughly $58.83 billion in net inflows because the launch of the US-based spot Bitcoin ETFs.
