Bitcoin Investment Trust (BIT) has been approved to go public on the securities marketplace OTC Markets Group, with shares available to be traded as early as next week. However, this may be available only to investors of Grayscale Investments, which will sponsor BIT. The fund will be listed under the symbol GBTC.

Grayscale Investments is a private investment vehicle owned by Digital Currency Group (DGC), which would take on the responsibilities to launch and run the fund. Director of sales & business development Michael Sonnenshein says that they are trying to establish themselves as a trusted authority on digital currency investing by developing a fleet of products that will allow people to invest in cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoin Investment Trust Trading

“What is going to be traded are existing shares and those shares are owned by people who have owned them for longer than a year. Having owned them longer than a year, that means they no longer have a restriction on them, but shareholders have to elect to sell those shares,” Sonnenshein added, explaining that they can’t set a time frame yet as to when eligible owners of BIT shares can start trading.

Updates on the Grayscale website inform potential investors of the volatile nature of bitcoin, emphasizing that there are risks involved in trading the cryptocurrency. It also clarifies that the fund is not registered under the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Grayscale has been up front with its day-to-day operations, as the firm is based in a DCG office in New York. Sonnenshein added that the team is expanding, as the small group is looking to increase hiring once market interest in BIT grows.

For now, BIT has restricted its shares to eligible investors, although those who do not yet meet the requirements can still purchase shares through the OTCQX marketplace.