Fee Details Revealed: Grayscale Bitcoin ETF Uplist Comes with a 1.5% Charge

Asset manager Grayscale has reduced its management fee from 2% to 1.5% as part of its proposed transition to a spot Bitcoin ETF, as outlined in an updated S3 filing. Grayscale, boasting approximately $27 billion in assets under management (AUM), also revealed the addition of Jane Street, Virtu, Macquarie Capital, and ABN AMRO Clearing as authorized participants (APs).

Fee Details Revealed: Grayscale Bitcoin ETF Uplist Comes with a 1.5% Charge

In an insightful interview, Michael Sonnenshein, the CEO of Grayscale Investments, shared their strategic considerations in the decision-making process regarding fees for the proposed shift to a spot Bitcoin ETF. He explained, “We did a ton of research to evaluate similar product offerings’ fees, including spot and futures-based ETFs in geographies around the world that have been earlier to open access to bitcoin through the ETF wrapper.“

While shedding light on Grayscale’s approach to fee determination, Sonnenshein refrained from commenting on other ETF developments, including BlackRock’s recently announced fee structure starting at 0.20%, rising to 0.30%.

Acknowledging the emerging trend in the U.S. financial landscape, Sonnenshein emphasized the intensifying fee competition among new issuers. He described this phenomenon as a “race to the bottom,” where these entities, entering the market with a clean slate, are striving to position themselves attractively to investors by offering competitive fee structures. This dynamic reflects the keen competition and strategic maneuvering within the growing cryptocurrency ETF space in the United States.