Valkyrie adds BitGo as custodian for its spot bitcoin ETF

Valkyrie has added BitGo as a custodian for its spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund, according to a regulatory filing posted on Thursday. 

Valkyrie said it still plans to have Coinbase Trust Company stay on as a custodian as well. 

"The Sponsor anticipates utilizing the custodial services of both Coinbase and BitGo to custody the Trust’s bitcoin," Valkyrie said.

Many of the spot bitcoin ETFs that got approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission have Coinbase as their custodians, including BlackRock, Bitwise and Ark21. The Hashdex spot bitcoin ETF, which was also approved last month, lists BitGo as its custodian. 

Mike Belshe, CEO of BitGo, called Valkyrie's move to add his firm as a custodian as a win for the industry, in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

"Valkyrie has added @BitGo as a custodian for their #Bitcoin ETF. This is a huge win for the industry as we partner to secure their assets," Belshe said on Thursday. "Kudos to @valkyriefunds, @LeahWald and @stevenmcclurg for leading the industry with the best approach to mitigate risk in ETF custody."

Competition heats up

Spot bitcoin ETF issuers are looking at ways to increase profitability as competition heats up among the firms, according to Bloomberg News. 

Firms have also continued to slash fees over the past month. Invesco and Galaxy's spot bitcoin ETF, which has been more in the middle of the pack, dropped its fee from 0.39% to 0.25% earlier this week. 

Fidelity lowered its fee to 0.25% right before its spot bitcoin ETF was approved, down from 0.39%.

Updated at 4:15 p.m. ET to include post from Mike Belshe