Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust Becomes 1st SEC Reporting Company
- The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust is now the first digital currency investment vehicle to be registered under the Exchange Act of 1934.
- Although the trust will have to file quarterly and annual reports with the SEC, it is now open to a wider range of investors.
Emblem of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington, DC on November 26, 2016. Mark Van Scyoc/Shutterstock
Grayscale Investments was successful in registering its Bitcoin Trust as a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reporting company, the firm said in a press release on 21 January.
According to the announcement, the Bitcoin Trust became the first digital currency investment vehicle to attain the status of an SEC reporting company. The trust provides investors with exposure to Bitcoin, in the form of a security, while at the same time mitigating the risks.
Grayscale filed a Form 10 with the U.S. SEC back in November 2019, which became effective automatically once 60 days had past. After becoming an SEC reporting company, the trust will now need to file quarterly and annual reports with the regulator, publish updates on unscheduled material events and corporate changes.
The trust’s shares are also now registered under the Exchange Act of 1934, which reduces the statutory holding period for accredited investors from 12 months to 6 months.
The trust is now also open to a wider range of investors, as some institutions restrict investors from participating in trusts that are not SEC-regulated reporting companies.
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Former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky on Centre Stage during day three of Web Summit, Lisbon, Portugal, 4 November 2021.Piaras Ó Mídheach/Web Summit via Sportsfile/Flickr
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