Zcash ETF: Winklevoss twins enter ZEC race with 0.25% fee proposal

The Winklevoss twins have now entered the growing U.S. Zcash [ZEC] ETF race with a new proposed spot ETF that would give investors exposure to Zcash without requiring them to directly buy and store the cryptocurrency.

On the 6th of October, the company filed a preliminary S-1 registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the fund, which is proposed to trade on Nasdaq under the ticker “WINK.” 

Details of the new Zcash ETF

A key part of the proposal is Gemini Trust Company, which would serve as the ETF’s custodian. For those unaware, Gemini is associated with Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss and has previously been involved with Zcash.

The exchange became one of the first regulated U.S. platforms to offer Zcash trading and custody. Under the proposed structure, Gemini would therefore be responsible for safeguarding the ZEC held by the fund.

That said, the ETF would charge investors a 0.25% annual sponsor fee, meaning investors would effectively pay $2.50 per year for every $1,000 invested, before considering other expenses or the fund’s performance.

Remarking on this, Nate Geraci, president of NovaDius Wealth Management, said, 

The competition heats up

Interestingly, the filing comes as the U.S. Zcash ETF market is becoming increasingly competitive. At present, Grayscale’s Zcash ETF is the only live U.S. spot ZEC ETF.

The fund, which trades under the ticker ZCSH, began trading in August and has attracted significant investor interest.

According to AMBCrypto’s recent report, ZCSH reached $1 billion in AUM on the 24th of September, but only $306.12 million came from cumulative net inflows. That rapid growth was also significant enough for Grayscale to announce a 3-for-1 share split recently. 

At the same time, Bitwise has also filed for its own Zcash ETF. All this came as ZEC’s price was trading at $1,318.88 at press time with a modest drop in the past 24 hours. However, the year-to-date hike of ZEC of over 158% suggests that the recent drop might be just short-term noise.

Final Summary

• Winklevoss twins proposed that the Zcash ETF would charge investors a 0.25% annual sponsor fee.
• Grayscale is the first one to go live with the Zcash ETF, whereas Bitwise has already filed with the SEC.