Switzerland’s SIX Exchange Lists XRP Exchange Traded Product

The Swiss SIX Stock Exchange announced on April 2, 2019, that it has listed an XRP-based Exchange Traded Product (ETP) called Amun Ripple under the ticker symbol AXRP. The newly listed financial product is the first ever XRP ETP in the market and will track the price of Ripple’s cryptocurrency.

Professional and Well-Structured Package

The newly listed XRP-based ETP is brought by Swiss fintech startup Amun AG, which was also responsible for the enlistment of the exchange’s first cryptocurrency tracking ETP called HODL.

According to the firm which has, in the past, launched similar ETPs for bitcoin and ether, the appeal for single asset ETPs like the one for XRP help to solve “security and custody issues with a professional and well-structured package.

Per SIX Exchange, AMUN Ripple AXRP will incur a 2.5 percent management fee and the ticker used to identify the asset on Bloomberg will be AXRP SE while in Reuters the ticker will be AXRP.S.

Amun AG raised some $4 million in funding to facilitate more on-ramps for purchasing cryptocurrencies. The firm is reportedly planning to simplify the process of investing in cryptocurrencies by creating channels that are familiar with traditional investors. The firm says in its website:

“Amun makes investing in crypto assets as easy as buying a stock. Investors can invest in crypto easily, safely, and in a regulated way on the SIX Swiss Exchange.”

Open up Crypto Space Further

The company, which plans to introduce six to eight additional ETPs this year said that the demand for crypto-based financial products has far exceeded their expectations.

Substantiating on why they chose to go with an XRP-based ETP, the company said that they “do not make personal biases towards any crypto asset, so long as there is sufficient liquidity, good development records, and no nefarious activity.”

Amun AG has already issued ETPs linked to other cryptocurrencies like litecoin (LTC), bitcoin cash (BCH), EOS, and stellar lumens (XLM) and if it succeeds to add all the accepted and approved crypto ETPs later this year as it is planning, it will help further open up the crypto space. This will enable investors who have been dealing with traditional stocks alone to have an opportunity to enter the crypto market.

Monitored and Approved by FINMA

For the uninitiated, ETPs are backed and collateralized with an equal amount of cryptocurrency assets since they are passive investment instruments. Crypto-based ETPs are monitored and approved by Switzerland’s regulator the Federal Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA). Amun AG co-founder and CEO, Hany Rashwan, said in a recent interview:

“The collateral also has to be kept at an independent qualified custodian. The calculation of the price is checked multiple times a day by several parties.”

As BTCmanager reported last year, Amun AG received the green light to list a crypto index fund at the SIX Exchange to facilitate the world’s first ETP.

Switzerland continues to remain one of the most open countries towards blockchain and cryptocurrencies, and with the recent approval of its cryptocurrency regulations motion, one can expect more businesses to flock towards this pro-crypto country.