Hassans advises 3iQ’s The Bitcoin Fund on GSX listing

Hassans has advised Canadian investment fund manager 3iQ on its listing of The Bitcoin Fund on the Gibraltar Stock Exchange earlier this week, debuting one of the world’s first regulated and exchange-traded bitcoin funds on a European regulated exchange.

3iQ is one of the leading Canadian investment fund managers focused on investing in disruptive technologies and digital assets.

Having previously been approved by the Ontario Securities Commission and listed and traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange, a top 10 global exchange, The Bitcoin Fund is designed to provide investors with institutional level access to Bitcoin without the burden of buying and safekeeping coins, while unearthing unique opportunities for long-term capital appreciation.

Crypto platform Gemini is fulfilling the custodian functions of bitcoin held in the fund.

Aaron Payas, Funds & FinTech Partner at Hassans, and his team have acted as legal advisors to 3iQ and prepared the listing documentation.

“3iQ’s listing on the Gibraltar Stock Exchange provides proof positive that despite the challenges disruptors can expect to face, Gibraltar continues to punch above its weight in the context of the crypto and wider DLT space,” Mr Payas said.

“In Gibraltar, we continue to push the envelope, offering enterprises the solutions and the service that they need to meet today’s market demands.”

“It is exciting to be involved at the vanguard of these developments and it has been a pleasure to work with the team at 3iQ and GSX in making this a reality.”

Nick Cowan, CEO of the Gibraltar Stock Exchange, said: “The announcement provides further demonstrable evidence of innovative asset classes becoming accessible through mainstream investment vehicles which in turn leads to increased adoption and we welcome 3iQ to GSX and Gibraltar.”

“Following their recent high-profile listing on the Toronto Stock Exchange, the 3iQ team are no strangers to leading the charge and successfully engineering genuine industry-first milestone moments. I’m pleased that together, we can continue this trend of extending the benefits of bitcoin and digital assets more broadly to new categories of investors.”

Fred Pye, President and CEO of 3iQ, added: “Finally, sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and the many reputable financial institutions that are restricted to buying licenced, regulated, major exchange-listed products, now have access to the world’s only regulated, exchange-traded in Canada, publicly listed bitcoin fund.”

“Being listed on the Gibraltar Stock Exchange extends the reach of The Bitcoin Fund within the burgeoning European digital assets market, and continues the groundswell of momentum that has defined 3iQ’s exciting progress during the first half of 2020.”