Global X reduces crypto ETF fees as adviser interest ignites
Global X has reduced fees on its spot bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs via reductions in annual management fees.
From 1 July, this will affect the Global X 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (EBTC) and Global X 21Shares Ethereum ETF (EETH) funds which will reduce from 1.25 per cent to 0.59 per cent per annum.
EBTC and EETH were launched in May 2022.
Both ETFs track the performance of the cryptocurrencies in Australian dollars and grant investors access to segregated bitcoin and Ethereum held securely in “cold storage” with cryptocurrency custodian Coinbase.
This makes exposure to price movements available to investors via a regulated product on a major stock exchange, streamlining access and removing the complexities of direct crypto ownership.
The ETF provider said the fee reduction will “enable Australian investors to tap into a high-growth market with increased cost efficiency”.
Its Bitcoin ETF recently passed $118 million in assets under management, the firm said.
Global X chief executive, Evan Metcalf, said: “Global X is committed to the long-term opportunity that bitcoin and other crypto assets provide to investors as part of a diversified portfolio.
“We are pleased to offer a competitive management fee to Australian investors, providing an attractive opportunity for those looking to include cryptocurrency in their portfolios.
“Amid an exciting period for cryptocurrency, we’re seeing robust inflows into EBTC and EETH, a reflection of investors’ optimism and growing interest in digital assets in the longer term. Naturally, as investors are presented with more choice in the market, we anticipate this will further drive demand.”
Global X head of sales, Manny Damianakis, recently appeared on the Relative Return podcast to discuss the demand for thematic ETFs among financial advisers.
“There’s some advisers who are actually really pro the space and have done their own research on it. They’re typically not advising on it at the moment because they have approved product list considerations, but they have done their own work and are quite bullish. And there are others who are very naysayer, very traditional and see crypto as something speculative.
“It’s quite interesting when we see advisers, either their clients are looking to go in or they are actively discouraging it. For the ones who want to go in, EBTC or EETH is a smarter way of doing it as you remove some of the risks identified.”
Recommended for you
Outflows from an Australian private markets fund manager have caused FUM at Pacific Current to decline by $1 billion in the last quarter.
Former RIAA chief executive Simon O’Connor has joined the ethical advisory panel at U Ethical Investors.
Financial services leaders are “all cashed up with nowhere to grow” when it comes to M&A activity, according to Deloitte, with 90 per cent saying they have strong balance sheets ready for an acquisition.
As fund managers are urged to diversify their product ranges, they are finding a faster way to do this is via an acquisition of existing firms but experts say it is not without potential culture clashes.