Bitwise Bitcoin ETF Trust hires service providers, including BNY Mellon

Bitwise Bitcoin ETF Trust has appointed several service providers for its proposed bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) offering, including Bank of New York (BNY) Mellon.

BNY Mellon will serve as the Trust’s administrator, transfer agent as well as the proposed ETF’s custodian, according to an amended S-1 form filed by Bitwise with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday.

Foreside Fund Services has been appointed as the marketing agent, while Cohen & Co. as an auditor. The Trust is yet to hire a bitcoin custodian, who is going to be responsible for safekeeping the bitcoins owned by the Trust.

Bitwise initially filed an application for bitcoin ETF with NYSE Arca in January 2019. The product is yet to be approved by the SEC; a final decision is now scheduled for Oct. 13. SEC chairman Jay Clayton recently said that "progress is being made" on the bitcoin ETFs front. 

Last week, VanEck Securities and SolidX Management also hired BNY Mellon as the daily fund accountant, administrator and transfer agent for its recently launched VanEck SolidX Bitcoin Trust 144A Shares, a bitcoin ETF-like product, which is currently only available to “qualified institutional buyers.”