Money Manager VanEck Launches Cryptocurrency Price Indices

The company behind a recent effort to launch a cryptocurrency-tied exchange-traded fund (ETF) has unveiled a suite of new price indices related to bitcoin and other digital assets.

New York-based VanEck announced today that it is partnering with UK data firm CryptoCompare to launch the indices, which include several that focus on specific cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ether, as well as others that trace the movements of multiple assets. The indices are being managed through MV Index Solutions, a company owned by VanEck.

“Digital assets are a dynamic area that merits attention, especially by professional investor. Although not without risks, digital assets have the potential to integrate into the broad economy and become an investable asset class in their own right," Thomas Kettner, managing director for MVIS, said in a statement.

VanEck made headlines in August when filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission revealed a plan to list an ETF centered around bitcoin derivatives products. The filings – which came months after the SEC's rejection of an ETF effort launched by investors Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss – ultimately came to form part of a wider effort to create similar products for U.S. investors.

In late September, however, VanEck filed to withdraw its application, revealing at the time that the SEC was all but refusing to review ETF proposals built around cryptocurrency derivatives, owing to the nascent state of that market.

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