The firm has submitted an application for a commodity-focused fund in order to indirectly expose itself to the crypto industry.

As per the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Neuberger Berman hopes to gain access to the crypto industry via a subsidiary, and simultaneously would allow investors the benefit of indirect access through Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) futures and Bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds – ETFs.

Per 31 July, Neuberger Berman declared that it had over $164 million AUM, approximately 0.04% or $402 billion of the total amount of assets under management. Neuberger Berman published a statement earlier this year from the higher-ups saying that standard asset allocation should not regard cryptocurrency investments.

Additionally, the firm stated that Bitcoin (BTC) should not be regarded as merely a risk, but rather a risk that does pay off when uncertainty increases and that adds value to the decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies. Neuberger Berman also stipulated that exposed parties should be at peace with the fact that they might either incur gains or even losses of their entire capital due to the unpredictable nature of cryptocurrency investments.

After the comments of Gary Gensler, SEC Chair regarding the willingness to accept ETFs with crypto futures as opposed to direct exposure, Neuberger Berman is following in the footsteps of VanEck. The latter filed its 4th application for a futures-based ETF under the 1940 Act, and a swift approval from the SEC is expected. 

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