Key Takeaways
- • Bitwise Asset Management partnered with Superstate to develop tokenized share infrastructure for its ETFs, with the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF (NYSE: BSOL) positioned as the first fund to offer this capability.
- • Tokenized shares will maintain identical rights to traditional book-entry shares and be purchasable through existing channels, but shareholders can elect to hold shares either in traditional Depository Trust Company form or on-chain via blockchain recordkeeping.
- • Tokenized shares will not be freely transferable outside the designated recordkeeping system, preserving regulatory compliance while enabling blockchain-based settlement and custody.
- • Bitwise manages $9 billion in client assets across over 70 investment products and serves more than 5,500 private wealth teams, RIAs, family offices, and institutional investors, plus 21 banks and broker-dealers.
- • Availability of tokenized share options remains subject to legal and regulatory approval, with no assurance as to timing or applicability beyond BSOL or other Bitwise funds.
Summary
Bitwise Asset Management announced a strategic partnership with Superstate, a financial technology firm specializing in bringing securities on-chain, to develop tokenized share capabilities for its ETF lineup. Under this framework, investors purchasing shares of participating Bitwise funds will gain the option to hold their positions in either traditional book-entry form through The Depository Trust Company or in tokenized form recorded on a blockchain infrastructure maintained by Superstate's transfer agency systems.
The tokenization initiative represents a structural innovation rather than a substantive change in fund economics or shareholder rights. Investors will continue to purchase fund shares through existing channels using the same purchase mechanisms available today. Critically, tokenized shares carry identical rights to their book-entry counterparts, including voting rights and dividend distributions. However, tokenized shares are restricted in transferability and cannot be freely traded outside the designated recordkeeping system, a constraint designed to preserve regulatory compliance and prevent circumvention of securities law.
Bitwise expects its Solana Staking ETF (BSOL) to serve as the inaugural fund offering tokenized share eligibility, though the firm emphasizes that availability remains contingent upon applicable legal and regulatory requirements. The company provided no timeline for implementation and expressly disclaimed assurance regarding when or whether tokenized options would become available for BSOL or any other fund in its lineup.
This move positions Bitwise—which manages $9 billion in assets across over 70 investment products spanning ETFs, separately managed accounts, private funds, DeFi strategies, and staking products—at the intersection of traditional finance infrastructure and blockchain settlement mechanisms. The partnership signals institutional appetite for on-chain securities infrastructure while maintaining the regulatory guardrails necessary for SEC-registered investment products serving 5,500 wealth management teams, RIAs, family offices, institutional investors, and 21 banks and broker-dealers.
The tokenization initiative represents a structural innovation rather than a substantive change in fund economics or shareholder rights. Investors will continue to purchase fund shares through existing channels using the same purchase mechanisms available today. Critically, tokenized shares carry identical rights to their book-entry counterparts, including voting rights and dividend distributions. However, tokenized shares are restricted in transferability and cannot be freely traded outside the designated recordkeeping system, a constraint designed to preserve regulatory compliance and prevent circumvention of securities law.
Bitwise expects its Solana Staking ETF (BSOL) to serve as the inaugural fund offering tokenized share eligibility, though the firm emphasizes that availability remains contingent upon applicable legal and regulatory requirements. The company provided no timeline for implementation and expressly disclaimed assurance regarding when or whether tokenized options would become available for BSOL or any other fund in its lineup.
This move positions Bitwise—which manages $9 billion in assets across over 70 investment products spanning ETFs, separately managed accounts, private funds, DeFi strategies, and staking products—at the intersection of traditional finance infrastructure and blockchain settlement mechanisms. The partnership signals institutional appetite for on-chain securities infrastructure while maintaining the regulatory guardrails necessary for SEC-registered investment products serving 5,500 wealth management teams, RIAs, family offices, institutional investors, and 21 banks and broker-dealers.
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