On October 29, 2019, a panel of the Ontario Securities
Commission ("OSC") issued a decision (the
"Decision") that will allow The Bitcoin Fund (the
"Fund"), managed by 3iQ Corp. ("3iQ"), a
Canadian investment fund manager, to be the first publicly traded
bitcoin investment fund.
History
3iQ has created the proposed Fund as a non-redeemable investment
fund that would invest substantially all of its assets in bitcoin.
In October 2018, 3iQ filed a non-offering prospectus with the OSC
with the intention of converting and refiling as an offering
prospectus to raise proceeds once all regulatory concerns were
resolved. However, staff at the OSC's Investment Funds &
Structured Products branch ("IFSP") formally recommended
against the Director issuing a receipt for that prospectus and in
February 2019, the Director IFSP issued a decision refusing to
issue a receipt for the Fund's preliminary prospectus. The
basis for this refusal was that bitcoin was an illiquid asset
