(Reuters) – U.S. digital currency asset manager Grayscale Investments on Tuesday introduced five crypto sector indices along with FTSE Russell, less than two months after winning a court backing to create an exchange-traded fund based on spot bitcoin.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had rejected the move, but a federal appeals court ruled that the regulator was wrong to reject an application from the company.
While the ruling does not mean its ETF is approved, the decision along with a spate of filings by asset managers like BlackRock and Invesco for similar investment vehicles have boosted sentiment in the crypto markets.
Earlier this month, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters the SEC was not planning to appeal the court ruling, fueling hopes that the filings could be approved soon.
That has led to a rise in the price of bitcoin in recent days. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency hit its highest in nearly a year and a half on Tuesday.
The FTSE-Grayscale indices would track the performance of crypto assets in five categories – currencies, smart contract platforms, financials, consumer and culture and utilities and services.
“Investors have increasingly expressed interest in diversifying beyond crypto’s largest assets – Bitcoin and Ethereum – and many look to Grayscale to better understand this robust, evolving asset class,” CEO Michael Sonnenshein said.
All the five indices will be reassessed quarterly, Grayscale said.
(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)
