May. 09, 2022
Dear SEC, I am Colin Smith and work in Technical Sales in Pennsylvania. I am in favor of approving the Form 19b-4 that NYSE Arca filed with you to convert Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (OTCQX: GBTC) – the world’s largest publicly traded crypto asset fund, with approximately $30 billion in AUM, hundreds of millions in daily trading volume, more than 850,000 investors, holding approximately 3.4% of all Bitcoins outstanding – into a Bitcoin Spot ETF. This year, GBTC has traded at an approximately 25% discount to its NAV, which means the price of GBTC is less than the price of its underlying assets, Bitcoin. With approximately $30 billion in AUM, that results in approximately $7.5 billion of trapped value from existing U.S. investors. As an investor, I value freedom to use and access to financial tools more than any other attributes as they allow Americans to ability to create their own destiny and participate in financial tools currently unavailable to retail and institutional investors alike. It is perplexing that a Spot ETF has not been approved given that futures contracts have. Frankly, as a retail investor, I’m more comfortable participating in a Spot product than a future contract. Further, I’m more comfortable holding Bitcoin directly than participating in a futures contract. That said, which alternative do you believe offers more inventor protection, a Spot ETF or direct Bitcoin investment wherein investors must secure their own assets without institutional custody solutions? Sincerely, Colin Smith