Hong Kong is set to debut Asia’s inaugural Bitcoin futures inverse exchange-traded fund (ETF), the CSOP Bitcoin Futures Daily (-1x) Inverse Product (7376.HK), on July 23. This pioneering ETF, introduced by CSOP Asset Management, one of China’s preeminent asset managers, offers investors an innovative vehicle to profit from Bitcoin price declines.

Product Overview

The CSOP Bitcoin Futures Daily (-1x) Inverse Product is meticulously designed to mirror the inverse daily performance of the S&P Bitcoin Futures Index. Utilizing a futures-based replication strategy, the ETF invests directly in spot-month Chicago Mercantile Exchange Bitcoin Futures.

In a company announcement dated July 22, CSOP revealed that the product will debut on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) with an initial listing price of approximately 7.8 Hong Kong dollars per unit.

Read more: Bitcoin ETF Exodus: A Deep Dive into Recent Trends

Evolution of Crypto ETFs in Hong Kong

Since late 2022, HKEX has been actively trading spot crypto ETFs. This began with CSOP’s introduction of Bitcoin Futures ETF and Ether Futures ETF, both tracking cash-settled contracts of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) futures on the CME. Following this, Samsung Asset Management Hong Kong launched its Bitcoin Futures ETF in January 2023.

As of April 29, the combined assets under management for these three futures products on HKEX reached 1.3 billion Hong Kong dollars, equivalent to 170 million USD.

Regulatory Scrutiny: Seven Unregulated Crypto Exchanges Flagged

On July 5, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) issued warnings regarding seven crypto exchanges operating illicitly within the territory. These exchanges were flagged for providing services without proper operational licenses and were subsequently added to the SFC’s “Suspicious Virtual Asset Trading Platforms” list. This initiative is part of the SFC’s broader effort to mitigate fraud and scams by maintaining comprehensive public records of registered, unregistered, and illegal crypto trading entities.