On Tuesday, Bitwise expanded its selection of crypto-focused ETFs with the release of the Bitwise Bitcoin Standard Corporations ETF (OWNB ).
OWNB seeks to generate corresponding results to that of the Bitwise Bitcoin Standard Corporations Index. The fund has a net expense ratio of 85 basis points.
Bitwise’s index focuses on companies that hold a significant amount of bitcoin. In particular, the index targets firms that have at least 1,000 bitcoin within their balance sheets.
“A lot of people wonder: Why do companies buy and hold bitcoin? The answer is simple: For the exact same reasons people do,” noted Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan.. “Companies are sitting on trillions of dollars in cash, and they look at the U.S. government running a more than $2 trillion annual deficit and think, ‘This isn’t going to end well.’ These companies perceive bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset that’s liquid and scarce—and not subject to the whims or money printing of any government. We think companies are only getting started here, and this ETF gives investors exposure to innovative firms at the forefront of this trend.”
Eligible companies for the index must have a market cap of at least $100 million. As an additional factor, these companies must pass index standards for free float and liquidity.
Once a company has been chosen for inclusion in the index, it is assigned portfolio weight relative to the value of its bitcoin holdings. That being said, single companies will not consist of more than 25% of the index’s total portfolio weight.
Companies chosen for the Bitwise index may operate domestically or internationally. This includes companies that may be operating in emerging markets.
Focused on the Index
In order to track the performance of the index, OWNB traditionally employs a full replication strategy. As such, the find will tend to hold similar industry concentration to that of the index. As of February 25th, 2025, the index has significant exposure to the information technology sector.
“With the launch of the Bitwise Bitcoin Standard Corporations ETF, Bitwise continues to grow the crypto ETF system beyond spot crypto products,” added Roxanna Islam, CFA, CAIA, Head of Sector & Industry Research at VettaFi. “The universe of companies exposed to Bitcoin is also evidence of the corporate sector’s adoption of digital assets.”
Bitwise currently offers a wide variety of different crypto strategies within the ETF wrapper. One of the largest Bitwise funds, the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF Trust (BITB ), has over $3.4 billion in assets under management.
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