Do you have to hold GBTC for 6 months?

Grayscale, a subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, is a pioneer in digital-asset management, and its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, a closed-end fund, has been publicly listed since 2013 . At one point, it was one of the few ways for traditional investors to credibly gain exposure to the world’s No. 1 digital asset: bitcoin.

The trade works when funds borrow bitcoin to deposit into GBTC, then they have shares of GBTC that are worth more than the bitcoin they bought. When the unlock period occurs the shares, redeemable for bitcoin, have a mark-up over the price of bitcoin and thus the fund finds itself in possession of free bitcoin .19 Tem 2021

Since the beginning of 2020, the lockup period of GBTC shares of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust became SEC-compliant and the lockup period was reduced by half (from 1 year to 6 months). It was one of the main factors that increased institutional interest in GBTC.

Due to the nature of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, institutional investors who buy the fund directly must hold the shares for six months before selling on the secondary market . July 17 is one of the largest days of the unlock period, with 16,240 bitcoin worth of GBTC becoming available to trade, according to Bybt.com.10 Tem 2021

This will allow accredited investors who purchased shares in the Trust’s private placement to have an earlier liquidity opportunity, as the statutory holding period of private placement shares would be reduced from 12 months to 6 months , according to SEC rules.

That trust is set up as a private placement, where qualified investors can buy shares directly from Grayscale. After six months, they can sell those shares on public markets under the ticker GBTC .

Grayscale Investments is preparing to “unlock” a gigantic crypto fund allowing the sale of shares worth up to 40,000 Bitcoins . The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) is the world’s largest crypto fund and consists of holdings amounting to 650,000 BTC.