New 'inverse' Bitcoin ETF now lets investors short BTC price

Bitcoin (BTC) investors in Canada have two more outlets for BTC exposure this week — and can now even bet on a price crash.

In a press release on April 14, Horizons ETFs Management confirmed that its two new exchange-traded funds (ETFs) would start trading on the Toronto stock exchange Thursday.

Horizons: Bitcoin has "polarizing views"

Already a pioneer in the regulated institutional investment space for Bitcoin, Canada has now given the go-ahead for the first such fund dedicated to Bitcoin price losses, not gains.

Dubbed the BetaPro Inverse Bitcoin ETF (BITI), the fund allows investors to short Bitcoin futures. Rather than a sign of bearish sentiment, however, executives describe the offering as a way to capture episodes of price volatility.

Its sister, the BetaPro Bitcoin ETF (HBIT), will function in the more traditional sense, complementing the short opportunity.

"We know that there are polarizing views on bitcoin and as a result, there are investors with a high degree of conviction on both the bullish and bearish cases for the asset class,"  Steve Hawkins, President and CEO of Horizons ETFs, said in the release.

"In launching HBIT and BITI, our goal is to provide investment tools that allow investors to get liquid access to the returns of bitcoin futures with the ability to go long or short the asset class, based on their outlook and conviction." 

ETFs see fervent demand

The move comes as Bitcoin circles new all-time highs near $65,000 and institutional interest grows in tandem.

This week, open interest in Bitcoin futures reached a fresh historic peak, passing $25 billion ahead of exchange Coinbase being listed on Nasdaq.

Grayscale's Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), nonetheless continued to produce a negative share price premium relative to spot prices, and traded at around a 14.3% discount on Thursday. 

United States regulators have yet to approve a single Bitcoin ETF, giving Canada a firm edge despite its market being a fraction of its neighbor.

The Purpose Bitcoin ETF, the first to get the green light in the country earlier this year, now has $1.4 billion CAD ($1.12 billion USD) in assets under management.

As Cointelegraph noted, however, exposure to ETFs is still possible indirectly in the U.S.