Samsung Asset Management launches first blockchain-focused ETF in Hong Kong as technology grows beyond cryptocurrencies
- The Hong Kong arm of Samsung Asset Management will list the first ETF in Hong Kong that invests in blockchain-related companies
- The ETF, which has raised US$12 million from investors, will also invest in companies that deal in cryptocurrencies
Samsung Asset Management has launched a blockchain-focused exchange-traded fund, the first of its kind in Hong Kong, which will track companies involved in the field including cryptocurrencies.
“The application of blockchain technologies is very wide and is not limited to cryptocurrencies. We believe that its adoption will widen to 80 per cent of the world’s population by 2030 from less than 1 per cent today,” said Ling.
The ETF will not invest directly in cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, ether and other digital tokens, the most common use of blockchain, which are traded by investors looking to profit from the rise and fall in their values.
“The ETF portfolio will initially focus on stocks listed in the US, Europe and Japan, as there are more blockchain-related companies listed in these markets,” said Norman Chan, a portfolio manager at Samsung Asset Management (HK).
The top 10 holdings of the ETF are likely to include US-listed exchange CME Group, which offers bitcoin futures contracts, cryptocurrency banking group Silvergate, and IBM. It will also invest in other cryptocurrency-related ETFs such as Proshares Bitcoin Strategy ETF listed in New York.
The ETF will seek to invest in up to 60 companies, and will debut on the Hong Kong stock exchange at a listing price of US$2. It will, however, be traded in Hong Kong dollars in lots of 50 units.
This blockchain-focused fund will be Samsung Asset Management (HK)’s sixth ETF in Hong Kong, said Ling. The company is wholly-owned by Korea’s Samsung Asset Management, which had US$258 billion of assets under management as of December 2021.
The market size of blockchain is expected to grow to US$228 billion by 2028, from US$4.9 billion in 2021, according to research firm The Insight Partners.