Key Takeaways
- Nasdaq’s crypto ETF launched with $70 million in assets, primarily tracking Bitcoin and Ethereum.
- The ETF charges a 0.25% annual management fee, increasing to 0.50% after 2025.
- Hashdex, a prominent player in the crypto ETF sector, is seeking approval from the SEC to expand its Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF to include XRP, Solana (SOL), Cardano (ADA), Chainlink (LINK), Avalanche (AVAX), Litecoin (LTC), and Uniswap (UNI), according to a recent amendment submitted to the securities regulator.
The ETF, trading under the ticker NCIQ, officially launched on February 13 after securing approval from the SEC. The fund is also the first dual Bitcoin-Ethereum ETF in the US.
The ETF charges a management fee of 0.25% annually through December 31, 2025, after which it will increase to 0.5%. Coinbase Custody and BitGo Trust serve as crypto asset custodians for the fund.
Currently, the ETF holds approximately 88% of Bitcoin and approximately 12% of Ethereum and has roughly $70 million in total net assets.
In a statement upon the ETF launch, Hashdex said that crypto assets must meet several criteria to be eligible for inclusion in the index, including trading on at least two core crypto platforms, having custodial support, maintaining minimum trading volumes, and being listed on a US-regulated crypto asset trading platform or derivatives platform.
The filing detailed the assessment of the top 15 crypto assets by market capitalization as of October 23, 2024, against five “NCI Criteria.” Only BTC, ETH, AVA, LINK, and LTC met all criteria at the time.
Hashdex also noted that new crypto assets will only be considered for inclusion if they meet the predetermined “eligibility criteria” outlined in their filing.
The proposal came less than a month after Hashdex obtained approval from the Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM) to launch the world’s first spot XRP ETF, the Hashdex NASDAQ XRP Index Fund.