(Reuters) – BlackRock is close to filing an application for a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), CoinDesk reported on Thursday, citing a person familiar with the matter.
The world’s largest asset manager will be using Coinbase Custody – an offline storage solution for digital assets – for the ETF, and the crypto exchange’s spot market data for pricing, the report added.
BlackRock did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the matter.
The move comes at a time when the global cryptocurrency industry has been caught in the crosshairs of the U.S. securities regulator on alleged violations of securities laws.
Earlier this month, the regulator sued major exchanges Coinbase and Binance in high-profile lawsuits that reverberated through the digital assets industry.
(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)
