Cathie Wood Insists She is Still Bullish Despite Dumping GBTC Shares

One of ARK Invest’s exchange-traded funds, the ARK Next Generation Internet ETF, has sold 2.25 million shares from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). The fund acquired 4.32 million ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) and 20,000 shares of the ARK 21Shares Active Bitcoin Futures Strategy ETF (ARKA) in the same fell swoop.

ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood said the firm sold its GBTC shares “out of an abundance of caution” that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) does not approve the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF in January 2024. The narrowing of GBTC shares to the net value of the underlying Bitcoin per share has made a sale lucrative.

Grayscale Victory Narrows NAV Discount

Wood said her sale of GBTC was not indicative of a loss of faith in Bitcoin.

“We’re as optimistic about Bitcoin as we’ve ever been,” she affirmed.

Read more: How To Prepare for a Bitcoin ETF: A Step-by-Step Approach

In June, shares in Grayscale’s closed-ended Bitcoin Trust were trading 40% below the net asset value (NAV). Optimism around the approval of several spot Bitcoin ETFs has narrowed the discount to around 7%.

GBTC Discount Narrows From 40% in June | Source: Bloomberg

Grayscale’s victory over the US Securities and Exchange (SEC) took it one step closer to converting GBTC into an ETF. In recent interviews, Grayscale’s CEO Michael Sonnenshein said that the company is “operationally ready” to convert GBTC into an ETF.

Wood Makes Good on Bitcoin Futures Promise

In an interview with CNBC earlier this year, Wood said that Bitcoin would outperform crypto-related stocks in the long term. In the meantime, ARK is eyeing products investing in Bitcoin futures (like the ProShares ETF), Ethereum futures, Bitcoin futures and cash, Ethereum futures and cash, and companies that invest in Bitcoin. The company is awaiting a ruling from the SEC on whether its exchange-traded fund application is successful.

Wood stoked curiosity by selling Coinbase shares from one of ARK’s ETFs earlier this year. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said that Wood likely COIN shares to adjust the weighting of Coinbase stocks in ARK’s exchange-traded products. Wood later bought shares in Coinbase competitor Robinhood.

Read more: Coinbase Review 2024: The Best Crypto Exchange for Beginners?

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