(Yicai) April 8 -- Several Chinese mutual fund managers are vying to launch Hong Kong's first spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds as early as this quarter to tap into investors' increasing interest in virtual assets and the special administrative region's strategic positioning as a global crypto hub.

The first spot Bitcoin ETFs, which hold actual Bitcoin instead of futures, are expected to come to fruition as soon as this quarter, and they could boost local Bitcoin ETF issuers' assets under management, Securities Times reported today, citing market insiders.

Crypto is trending again this year as Bitcoin surged to exceed USD71,000 to hit a record high on March 11. Last December, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority said it would consider applications for spot crypto ETFs after CSOP Asset Management, a unit of Shenzhen-based China Southern Asset Management, launched the SAR's first Bitcoin futures ETF [HKG: 3066] in December 2022.

"We are now positioning in the Bitcoin business too," a source at Harvest Fund Management said, adding that the products will not be futures. A local unit of Harvest Fund has already filed with the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong to launch a spot Bitcoin ETF, the report added.

Moreover, a subsidiary of China Asset Management has recently joined hands with HashKey Exchange, a licensed custodian to prepare Bitcoin ETFs in the SAR. HashKey also predicted that the first spot ETFs will be debuted in the first half.

The trailblazers could be followed by latecomers. An insider from a large mainland-based mutual fund manager said that the firm is paying close attention to how the Bitcoin ETFs of its peers perform while assessing prospects.

Bitcoin was trading at USD66,721 as of 6.58 p.m. Beijing time.

Editor: Emmi Laine