u.today
Leading cryptocurrency asset manager Grayscale has hired ex-Alerian CEO David LaValle to lead its effort to convert its Bitcoin trust into an exchange-traded fund, Bloomberg reports.
Before he spearheaded Alerian, LaValle had had key roles at Nasdaq and State Street. At Nasdaq, he was responsible for running the ETF markets.
LaValle has been involved in the ETF industry from the very beginning of his career that started on the American Stock Exchange, which is now known as the NYSE American.
After plenty of speculation, Grayscale eventually confirmed its plan to convert its crown jewel into an ETF in early April, potentially putting pressure on a string of other key players of the likes of Fidelity, VanEck and SkyBridge that are all vying to get their filings approved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Grayscale Bitcoin Trust has $25 billion under management as of Aug. 3.
CEO Michael Sonnenshein recently said that the company was fully committed to turning the trust into an ETF:
I think in our seat, from our view of the world, we’re really looking for a couple of different points of maturation in the underlying market, and that’s really the final stages of what we think regulators need to approve those types of products and give investors the protections that they’re looking for