These Crypto ETFs Let You Invest in Bitcoin Without Buying It Outright

Crypto investing is a contentious issue, but its popularity is undeniable. This year, the asset class is expected to see trading volume surpass $297 trillion, up from $106 trillion in 2022. With institutional adoption on the rise and regulatory clarity coming into sight, it is evident that digital assets are not a fad.

However, ownership rates in the U.S. have slipped to 28% in 2025 from a five-year high of 33% in 2022.

Uncertainty about crypto's utility as an actual currency is a deterrent, as is its esoteric nature. The crypto landscape is rife with jargon — "dApp," "halving," "HODL" and "staking," for example — that can be confusing for newcomers. So, too, is the process of buying and selling coins or tokens through decentralized platforms amid a proliferation of scams.

For those who understand crypto's potential yet are reluctant to add it to their portfolios, a tried-and-true investment vehicle can provide exposure while maintaining its place in the world of traditional equities: exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Spot bitcoin and ethereum ETFs

According to a 2024 study conducted by the Journal of Financial Planning and the Financial Planning Association, ETFs are now the most commonly recommended investment vehicle among financial planners. More than 89% use them with their clients — more than cash and cash equivalents (81%), mutual funds (68%) or individual stocks (53%). The study also found that just 4.81% of financial planners recommend crypto.

The number of ETFs on the market has grown to over 12,000. They are often associated with index funds that provide broad, weighted exposure to the S&P 500, Nasdaq and Dow Jones Industrial Average. But on Jan. 11, 2024, when spot bitcoin ETFs debuted, the reception was noteworthy.

On the first day after receiving regulatory approval, 11 bitcoin ETFs saw $4.6 billion in trading volume. The funds' popularity was immediate, with investors rushing to tap into the ability to hold an investment benchmarked to the performance of crypto without having to actually own the digital assets themselves.

"These ETFs make it more likely that people are going to start dipping their toes into digital assets," says Dan Weiskopf, senior portfolio manager at Tidal Financial Group and co-portfolio manager of the Amplify Transformational Data Sharing ETF.

Spot bitcoin ETFs — and spot ethereum ETFs, which debuted in July 2024 — bypass the need to directly invest in crypto, thereby eliminating many of the challenges that have disincentivized investors from jumping onboard.

Another reason these funds have gained wide approval is because of their higher liquidity, which gives investors faster access to their funds.

"With the spot ETF, it's on your statement," Weiskopf says. "You're getting paid ... but if it's in the hard wallet [like crypto is], you don't get paid."

Spot ETFs allow investors to gain exposure through their traditional brokerage accounts. The largest of these funds, the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT), has rewarded shareholders with a gain of nearly 97% since its inception, mirroring the performance of bitcoin over the same period. Meanwhile, the iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) has lost more than 42% since its inception, reflecting the loss of the second largest crypto by market cap at the same time.

More recently, these ETFs have been attracting investors as the markets continue to grapple with heightened volatility and ongoing uncertainty. According to digital asset media platform Decrypt, bitcoin ETFs have seen inflows exceeding $3 billion over the past five trading days, as traditionally safe-haven gold ETFs have seen outflows of $1 billion after the precious metal hit its all-time high earlier in April.

Crypto-themed ETFs

Of course, simply changing the medium of crypto investing does not eliminate its volatility. Spot bitcoin and ethereum ETFs experience equally dramatic price fluctuations because the funds hold the coins as the underlying assets.

According to Weiskopf, that requires a pick-and-shovel solution. The idiom refers to the California gold rush, when fortunes were made not just from the precious metal but also the tools and infrastructure necessary to facilitate mining. In a modern crypto context, that is what the Amplify Transformational Data Sharing ETF (BLOK) aims to do.

Weiskopf says BLOK achieves that by currently providing investors with 8% direct exposure to bitcoin through the spot ETFs, but also with indirect exposure through stocks of companies that are involved in crypto or situated in industries that will inevitably be disrupted by it.

That disruption, according to Weiskopf, is why slow crypto adoption rates among retail investors is not a major issue. "You can't say that adoption isn't taking place," he says. "It's how it's going to be adopted, and that's an important distinction. Everybody is focused on bitcoin and its upside potential without seeing what's going on behind the scenes with infrastructure."

Adoption at the corporate level is one reason why BLOK holds companies heavily invested in the crypto landscape. The ETF's top portfolio position is MicroStrategy, a mobile software and cloud services provider, which is the largest corporate bitcoin holder with 538,200 BTC currently valued at $51.3 billion. BLOK also has positions in Coinbase, PayPal, Block (formerly Square), Nvidia and Mastercard in addition to three spot bitcoin ETFs.

Mastercard serves as an example adoption at the corporate level. While most people associate the company with payment card services, it offers a range of transaction processing services, which now include crypto.

"Mastercard, according to their [annual report], has had 30% of their transaction volume on the blockchain," Weiskopf says. "For most folks, Mastercard doesn't seem to align with how they think about crypto. But we know big companies are adopting it."

Whether through spot ETFs or thematic ETFs, Weiskopf stresses the importance of finding a way to get some exposure to crypto's enormous growth potential. He even likens it to the advent of the internet.

"Imagine if you had the opportunity to capture the disruption of the internet 20 years ago when you knew it was going to change business," he says. "That's what we're looking at in the way of blockchain."

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