Summary
Two out of eleven financial institutions that issued spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, Bitwise and VanEck, have pledged to donate a percentage of their profits to open-source Bitcoin development. More issuers should follow suit as supporting Bitcoin Core developers strengthens the asset itself. Donating profits to fund developers is seen as a self-investment in the underlying infrastructure of Bitcoin. This support is crucial for the ongoing development and maintenance of Bitcoin.
Key Points
1. Only two out of 11 financial institutions that issued spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, Bitwise and VanEck, have pledged to donate a percentage of their profits to open-source Bitcoin development.
2. Bitwise committed to donating 10% of its ETF fee profits to three different nonprofits that fund Bitcoin Core developers for 10 years, while VanEck promised to contribute 5% of HODL profits to a nonprofit supporting Bitcoin Core developers.
3. More spot Bitcoin ETF issuers should follow Bitwise and VanEck’s lead in supporting Bitcoin Core developers, as it is crucial for the ongoing development and maintenance of the Bitcoin protocol.