LPL Financial, the largest U.S. independent broker-dealer, will conduct a three-month assessment of the spot Bitcoin ETF market before allowing its advisers to invest in them.
The San Diego-based firm plans to conduct a thorough three-month assessment of the newly approved funds before deciding which ones to offer to its advisers.
The firm’s executive vice president of products and platform management, Rob Pettman, told Bloomberg that the $1.4 trillion investment giant wants to see how the spot Bitcoin ETFs perform in the markets before making a choice. He cited concerns that some of the funds might eventually shut down, creating problems for advisers and investors.
“We want to make sure that we’re not putting our advisers in a position where they’re going to have to unwind something that they’ve done.”
Rob Pettman
How LPL Financial Will Treat Existing Funds
Pettman also said that the firm will allow its advisers to purchase Grayscale Bitcoin Trust GBTC shares, which is expected to convert to a spot Bitcoin ETF soon. The trust, which currently charges a 2% annual fee, has been available on LPL Financial’s platform for a while and has a large market share.
However, Pettman said that the firm will evaluate the other nine spot Bitcoin ETFs that were approved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Jan. 10, 2024.
These include funds from issuers such as BlackRock, Bitwise, VanEck, and Valkyrie, which charge fees ranging from 0.20% to 0.95%.
What Other Crypto Experts Think of the Spot Bitcoin ETF Market
LPL Financial is not the only one in the crypto space that expects some consolidation in the spot Bitcoin ETF market. Several experts have expressed their views on which funds will survive and thrive in the long run.
Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein, for example, previously said that he expects less than five spot Bitcoin ETFs to remain in the market, with even fewer achieving “critical mass.” Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz also predicted that only two to three funds will emerge as winners in the space.
According to financial data, the nine new spot Bitcoin ETFs now hold nearly 178,000 BTC worth over $7.6 billion as of press time. The funds offer investors a regulated and accessible way to gain exposure to the price of bitcoin without having to buy and store the cryptocurrency directly.
To learn more about spot Bitcoin ETFs, you can read our articles on what they are, why they are better than futures-based ETFs, and which ones are available.