Market maker GSR launches first ETF tracking Bitcoin, Ether and Solana

Institutional crypto trading platform GSR launched its first crypto exchange-traded fund on Wednesday, recording nearly $5 million in trading volume on its first trading day.

The GSR Crypto Core3 ETF (BESO) tracks the spot price of Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and Solana (SOL) and offers staking rewards, GSR said in a statement on Wednesday. 

In a separate post on X, GSR said it will be adopting a “dynamic allocation strategy” to optimize returns for the fund, which carries a 1% management fee.

BESO saw 185,574 shares traded worth about $4.8 million on its opening day, Nasdaq data shows. The fund closed at $26.04 but rose to $33 in after-hours trading.

GSR’s market entry coincides with a wave of Wall Street firms that have recently launched or signaled their intention to launch a crypto ETF.

Among them is investment bank Morgan Stanley, which launched a spot Bitcoin ETF on April 8 that has already attracted $163.8 million in net inflows. 

On April 14, Goldman Sachs filed for a Bitcoin Premium Income ETF, enabling investors to earn passive income while still benefiting from potential price appreciation in Bitcoin.

GSR was founded by former Goldman Sachs traders Cristian Gil and Richard Rosenblum in 2013, making it one of the most established crypto market-making platforms in the industry.

Related: Charles Schwab to roll out spot Bitcoin, Ether trading for retail clients

GSR CEO Xin Song said the company expanded into the crypto ETF market to make its services available to a broader range of investors, adding:

“Our ETF strategy reflects our deep understanding of how this asset class is evolving.”

Bitcoin takes back seat in GSR fund model portfolio

GSR said allocations between Bitcoin, Ether and Solana for BESO will be rebalanced weekly based on “research-driven signals designed to pursue additional returns.“

GSR published a model portfolio analysis on Wednesday showing an optimized allocation between the cryptocurrencies, with Ether and Solana dominating at 51.4% and 41.67% respectively, while Bitcoin holds a smaller position at 6.93%.

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