Israel Greenlights Bitcoin Mutual Funds, Bringing BTC to Retail Investors

IBI and More are among the funds whose products have been approved by the regulator. The novel products will be launched on Dec. 31.

Israel is set to welcome the new year with the launch of Bitcoin mutual funds, as reported by Calcalist. This follows the Israel Securities Authority's approval earlier this December.

Among the funds whose products have been approved by the regulator include IBI and More.

The novel products will be launched on Dec. 31. Just like traditional mutual funds, they will be available for purchase at banks and investment houses, according to the report.

The upcoming launch of Bitcoin mutual funds in Israel will come nearly a year after spot-based Bitcoin exchange-traded funds had their groundbreaking debut in the U.S. According to data provided by SoSoValue, these ETFs have now accumulated roughly $110 billion in total net assets. BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF alone boasts $56 billion worth of assets.

As reported by U.Today, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission recently greenlit two additional cryptocurrency ETF products that simultaneously offer exposure to both Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Eyal Goren, deputy CEO of IBI Funds, stated that the successful launch of U.S.-based ETFs was the main factor that drove up Bitcoin prices significantly. Earlier this month, Bitcoin prices soared past the $100,000 mark.

Local industry executives expressed their disappointment over the timing of the approval, as they believe that their clients could have benefited from the massive Bitcoin price surge if the regulator had approved the mutual funds earlier.