Frankfurt / Zurich – Swiss Fintech firm 21Shares, the world’s leading issuer of crypto Exchange Traded Products (ETPs), is admitting to the regulated market of Deutsche Boerse Xetra venue the first centrally cleared Short Bitcoin ETP (SBTC – WKN A2781V – Ticker 21XS) on September 1st. This follows the success of its eleven other institutional grade crypto exchange-traded products and further cements its status as the specialist firm having the most expansive regulated product suite of crypto assets in the financial industry.
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SBTC is an innovative financial instrument that allows investors to gain exposure to the negative price movement of Bitcoin. SBTC is the world’s first centrally cleared short Bitcoin product, further reducing counterparty risk for institutional and retail investors when trading with their conventional brokers. Two months ago, 21Shares dual listed the world’s first Bitcoin ETP (ABTC) on Deutsche Boerse Xetra allowing further international investors to gain exposure to this nascent but novel asset class via a familiar ETP structure.
This structure gives investors several benefits when it comes to inverse exposure. Traded on regulated markets, investors can buy and sell the ETP intraday, in the same way they would when trading conventional shares with the identical regulatory protections in place. CCP clearing is a feature that investors expect when trading on a regulated exchange and 21Shares brings this standard which greatly reduces the counterparty risk when trading the short bitcoin ETP.
“We have lobbied carefully but vigorously with the exchange to be in a position to launch the world’s first centrally cleared short Bitcoin ETP on a regulated trading venue. The one missing trading product was to deliver a fully transparent financial instrument to capitalize on negative price movements within a complete regulated framework,” said Laurent Kssis, Managing Director at 21Shares in charge of the application with Deutsche Boerse.
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All of the 21Shares crypto ETPs can easily be purchased via any broker or bank with access to Boerse Frankfurt. Historically speaking, direct access to investing in crypto assets was and can often still be exposed to unregulated crypto exchanges, which are frequently in the news due to various lack of internal controls and financial structures lacking integrity which resulted in higher spreads, increased counterparty risk and large price premiums. Thus, the listing of the first centrally cleared Short Bitcoin ETP is a significant step towards mainstream adoption of crypto assets in conventional financial portfolios when it comes to hedging or simply use as protection.
“As noted earlier this year, 21Shares remains committed to introducing innovative products that offer exposure to crypto currencies via conventional and traditional ETPs, while remaining a leading provider in the crypto asset issuance” said Hany Rashwan, CEO at 21Shares. “Investors are now in a position to implement any bitcoin strategy in a safe, regulated, and conventional manner using a product that allows them to participate in the downwards movement of Bitcoin.”
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