SEC Approves Listing of 3x Leveraged Bitcoin and Ether Products

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the listing of leveraged products designed to deliver three times the daily move in Bitcoin and Ether futures prices.

Bitcoin.com reported on Oct. 4 that the SEC approved a proposed rule change filed by Cboe BZX. The decision clears the way for six products to list, including the 3x Bitcoin ETF sponsored by asset manager Volatility Shares LLC.

The approval also covers products tied to gold, silver, crude oil and natural gas, in addition to Bitcoin and Ether. All will be operated as separate series of VS Trust.

Despite the "ETF" label in their names, the products are legally distinct from conventional exchange-traded funds. They are exchange-traded products, or ETPs, that invest in commodity-linked assets and are not subject to the Investment Company Act of 1940, which applies to traditional ETFs.

The decision follows a proposed rule change that Cboe BZX filed on Aug. 10 to list six leveraged commodity products. The proposal was published on Aug. 19 and went through a public comment process.

The 3x Bitcoin product is structured to provide investment exposure equal to roughly three times the daily move in Bitcoin futures prices, rather than the spot price of Bitcoin itself.