This made cryptocurrency history. The entire crypto space has been in a state of heightened speculation for months, eagerly awaiting the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) verdict on several spot Bitcoin ETFs. And it was finally approved on January 10.

Investors have been clamoring for a spot Bitcoin ETF for almost a decade. Such an exchange-traded product, tracking Bitcoin's real-time price, allow investors to gain exposure to the asset without the technical and regulatory complexities of buying and holding Bitcoin directly. This addition to investment portfolios could democratize access to Bitcoin, allowing a broader base of investors to participate in the potential growth of the asset.

Potential ETF issuers and the fee war

Presently, 11 spot Bitcoin ETF applicants are lined up with their S-1 registrations, awaiting the SEC's nod. The names include TradFi heavyweights, such as BlackRock, WisdomTree, Franklin Templeton, VanEck, Invesco, and Fidelity, the CeFi giants, such as Grayscale, as well as smaller (but not less active) crypto players: Bitwise, Valkyrie, Hashdex, and ARK Invest.

There is a lot of money at stake, and these potential issuers seem to have engaged in a fee war. Early Monday morning, firms like BlackRock, VanEck, and ARK Invest updated their respective fund registrations, revealing aggressive fee structures. BlackRock's proposed fee of 0.30% was notably lower than industry expectations, raising the stakes for other competitors. Furthermore, firms like Bitwise, ARK 21Shares, and Invesco Galaxy announced 0% fees on their Bitcoin ETFs, to be increased to 0.24-0.59% later on.

Written by D.Center