Bitwise, a crypto index fund manager, is set to purchase the assets of Osprey Bitcoin Trust.
Bitwise is the largest crypto index funds manager in the U.S. It announced on August 27 in a Press Release that it had entered into an agreement to purchase the assets of Osprey Bitcoin trust.
The financial details of this transaction have not been disclosed. However, OBTC units holders will receive BITB share in a liquidating dividend. Existing BITB unitholders are expected to remain unchanged. Osprey Funds, according to their official website, had $123 million of assets under management on August 26.
According to the press release, OBTC unitholders will be exempt from paying federal income taxes in the United States. Osprey Funds said that further details would be included in a Registration Statement to be filed at the Securities and Exchange Commission. The transaction is expected to be completed later this year, pending the usual closing conditions.
The acquisition is in line with Osprey’s announcement earlier this year that it was exploring strategic options to increase unitholder value. This included the possibility of selling or merging the Trust.
Bitwise expands its Bitcoin Trust portfolio with the acquisition of Osprey Bitcoin Trust
Osprey claims that Bitwise’s acquisition of OBTC represents a “significant” step forward. The company also says Bitwise unitholders will be able to “benefit” from Bitwise’s expertise and scale.
This acquisition comes after Bitwise’s expansion in the European market, with the acquisition by ETC Group of a crypto exchange-traded products issuer based in London that manages over $1 billion worth of assets. The acquisition added nine European crypto ETPs listed on the stock exchanges to Bitwise’s portfolio. This marked a major step in Bitwise’s international expansion.
ETC Group was founded in 2019 and is best known for its Bitcoin ETP. Bitwise intends to rebrand ETC Group’s products under its name. However, no changes are expected to be made to existing investment strategies.
