FCA Grants Valour Authorization to Launch Bitcoin and Ether ETPs for UK Retail Market
This launch coincides with UK financial authorities reopening retail access to cryptocurrency products while international providers broaden their regulated product portfolios.
DeFi Technologies' UK arm, Valour, has obtained authorization from financial regulators to provide cryptocurrency exchange-traded products to the retail investing public via the London Stock Exchange.
According to a statement released on Monday by DeFi Technologies, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the United Kingdom had granted approval for Valour's exchange-traded products linked to Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) staking. These products, designated as 1Valour Bitcoin Physical Staking and 1Valour Ethereum Physical Staking, commenced trading activities on the London Stock Exchange on Monday.
"The UK is one of the world's most important financial markets, and these approvals broaden our ability to serve UK retail investors with transparent, exchange-listed products that provide straightforward exposure to the evolving digital asset economy,"
Johan Wattenström, DeFi Technologies chairman and CEO
In September, the organization revealed plans to list a Bitcoin staking ETP on the London Stock Exchange, though access was restricted exclusively to professional investors, a stark difference from Monday's launch, which specifically targets UK retail investors. Following the FCA's decision in October to remove restrictions on crypto ETPs for retail participants, multiple asset management firms including Bitwise began introducing their offerings.
Valour's latest development follows the firm's expansion activities in Brazil, where the company introduced an exchange-traded product connected to Solana (SOL) during December. Valour was contacted by Cointelegraph for additional commentary, though no response had been provided by the time of publication.
Data from the London Stock Exchange indicates that over 50 issuers maintain listings for more than 2,300 ETPs. The exchange is reported to have processed approximately $280 million in trading volume for cryptocurrency ETPs throughout December.
Largest outflows on record for crypto ETPs
On Monday, CoinShares disclosed that exchange-traded products connected to cryptocurrencies experienced outflows exceeding $1.7 billion during the previous week.
James Butterfill, who serves as the company's head of research, linked the shift from the prior week's $2.2 billion of inflows to "dwindling expectations for interest rate cuts, negative price momentum and disappointment that digital assets have not participated in the debasement trade."
Among the most prominent asset management companies providing crypto ETPs and exchange-traded funds are Grayscale Investments, Fidelity Investments and BlackRock.