UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): October 8, 2025
VINE HILL CAPITAL INVESTMENT CORP.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Cayman Islands | 001-42267 | 98-1794687 | ||
|
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
(Commission File Number) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number) |
|
500 E Broward Blvd,
Suite 900 |
33394 | |
| (Address of principal executive offices) | (Zip Code) |
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (954) 848-2859
Not Applicable
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation to the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| ☒ | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| ☐ | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| ☐ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| ☐ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of each exchange on which registered | ||
| Units, each consisting of one Class A ordinary share, $0.0001 par value, and one-half of one redeemable warrant | VCICU | Nasdaq Stock Market | ||
| Class A ordinary shares included as part of the units | VCIC | Nasdaq Stock Market | ||
| Redeemable warrants included as part of the units, each whole warrant exercisable for one Class A ordinary share at an exercise price of $11.50 | VCICW | Nasdaq Stock Market |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
Emerging growth company ☒
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Item 8.01 Other Events.
On October 8, 2025, Vine Hill Capital Investment Corp. (“Vine Hill”) issued a press release announcing that CoinShares International Limited (“CoinShares”) announced the launch of the CoinShares Altcoins ETF, a U.S. ETF offering access to altcoins. The Press Release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and incorporated by reference herein.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
General
This Current Report on Form 8-K is being filed in respect of the proposed business combination (the “Business Combination” and the other transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement among CoinShares, Vine Hill, Odysseus Holdings Limited, a newly formed holding company that will become the publicly listed company (“Holdco”) and the other parties thereto (collectively, the “Transactions”)) among Vine Hill, CoinShares, and Holdco. The information contained herein does not purport to be all-inclusive and none of Vine Hill, CoinShares, Holdco or their respective affiliates makes any representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness or reliability of the information contained in this communication.
Additional Information and Where to Find It
In connection with the Transactions, CoinShares, Vine Hill and Holdco plan to file a Registration Statement on Form F-4 (as amended and supplemented from time to time, the “Registration Statement”) with the SEC, which will include a preliminary proxy statement of Vine Hill and a prospectus of Holdco relating to the offer of the securities to be issued to Vine Hill’s securityholders in connection with the completion of the Business Combination (the “Proxy Statement/Prospectus”). The definitive proxy statement and other relevant documents will be mailed to Vine Hill shareholders as of a record date to be established for voting on the Transactions and other matters as described in the Proxy Statement/Prospectus. Vine Hill, CoinShares and/or Holdco will also file other documents regarding the Transactions with the SEC. This Current Report on Form 8-K does not contain all of the information that should be considered concerning the Transactions and is not intended to form the basis of any investment decision or any other decision in respect of the Transactions. BEFORE MAKING ANY VOTING OR INVESTMENT DECISION, SHAREHOLDERS OF VINE HILL AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES ARE URGED TO READ, WHEN AVAILABLE, THE PRELIMINARY PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS, AND AMENDMENTS THERETO, AND THE DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS AND ALL OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS FILED OR THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC IN CONNECTION WITH VINE HILL’S SOLICITATION OF PROXIES FOR THE EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING OF ITS SHAREHOLDERS TO BE HELD TO APPROVE THE TRANSACTIONS AND OTHER MATTERS AS DESCRIBED IN THE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS BECAUSE THESE DOCUMENTS WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT VINE HILL, COINSHARES, HOLDCO AND THE TRANSACTIONS. Investors and security holders will also be able to obtain copies of the Registration Statement and the Proxy Statement/Prospectus and all other documents filed or that will be filed with the SEC by Vine Hill, CoinShares and/or Holdco, without charge, once available, on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov or by directing a request to: Vine Hill Capital Investment Corp., 500 E Broward Blvd, Suite 900, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33394, or upon written request to CoinShares or Holdco at c/o CoinShares International Limited, 2nd Floor, 2 Hill Street, JE2 4UA St Helier Jersey, Channel Islands.
NEITHER THE SEC NOR ANY STATE SECURITIES REGULATORY AGENCY HAS APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED THE TRANSACTIONS DESCRIBED HEREIN, PASSED UPON THE MERITS OR FAIRNESS OF THE TRANSACTIONS OR ANY RELATED TRANSACTIONS OR PASSED UPON THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THE DISCLOSURE IN THIS CURRENT REPORT ON FORM 8-K. ANY REPRESENTATION TO THE CONTRARY CONSTITUTES A CRIMINAL OFFENSE.
Participants in the Solicitation
Vine Hill, CoinShares, Holdco and their respective directors, executive officers, certain of their shareholders and other members of management and employees may be deemed under SEC rules to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from Vine Hill’s shareholders in connection with the Transactions. You can find information about Vine Hill’s directors, executive officers, certain of their shareholders and other members of management and employees and their interest in Vine Hill can be found in the sections entitled “Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance – Conflicts of Interest,” “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters,” and “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions” of Vine Hill’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, which was filed with the SEC on March 26, 2025 and is available free of charge at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov and at the following URL: sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2025396/000101376225002707/ea0234943-10k_vinehill.htm. Additional information regarding the interests of such participants will be contained in the Registration Statement when available.
A list of the names of the directors, executive officers, other members of management and employees of CoinShares and Holdco, as well as information regarding their interests in the Business Combination, will be contained in the Registration Statement to be filed with the SEC. Additional information regarding the interests of such potential participants in the solicitation process may also be included in other relevant documents when they are filed with the SEC.
No Offer or Solicitation
The information contained in this Current Report on Form 8-K is for informational purposes only and is not a proxy statement or solicitation of a proxy, consent or authorization with respect to any securities or in respect of the Transactions and shall not constitute an offer to sell or exchange, or a solicitation of an offer to buy or exchange the securities of Vine Hill, CoinShares or Holdco, or any commodity or instrument or related derivative, nor shall there be any sale of any such securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, sale or exchange would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such state or jurisdiction. No offer of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of the Securities Act or an exemption therefrom. Investors should consult with their counsel as to the applicable requirements for a purchaser to avail itself of any exemption under the Securities Act.
Forward-Looking Statements
This Current Report on Form 8-K includes “forward-looking statements” with respect to Vine Hill, CoinShares and/or Holdco within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These forward-looking statements include all statements other than statements of historical fact, including, without limitation, estimates and forecasts of financial position, business strategy, plans, targets and objectives of the management of CoinShares for future operations (including development plans and objectives), the anticipated benefits of the Business Combination, the anticipated capitalization and enterprise value of Holdco and CoinShares following the Business Combination, expectations related to the terms and timing of the Business Combination, regulatory developments in CoinShares’ and/or Holdco’s industries, and funding of and investments into CoinShares and/or Holdco. The expectations, estimates and projections of the businesses of CoinShares and Vine Hill may differ from their actual results and consequently, you should not rely on these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “according to estimates”, “anticipates”, “assumes”, “believes”, “could”, “estimates”, “expects”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “is of the opinion”, “may”, “plans”, “potential”, “predicts”, “projects”, “targets”, “to the knowledge of”, “should”, “will”, “would”, or the negatives of these terms, variations of them or similar terminology, although not all forward-looking statements contain such identifying words.
Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may adversely affect CoinShares’ and Holdco’s ability to implement and achieve their plans and objectives set out in such forward-looking statements and which may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on numerous assumptions regarding CoinShares’ and Holdco’s present and future policies and plans and the environment in which CoinShares and Holdco will operate in the future. Many actual events or circumstances are outside of the control of CoinShares, Holdco or Vine Hill. Furthermore, certain forward-looking statements are based on assumptions or future events which may not prove to be accurate, and no reliance whatsoever should be placed on any forward-looking statements in this Current Report on Form 8-K. Factors that may cause such differences include, but are not limited to: (1) the Transactions not being completed in a timely manner or at all, which may adversely affect the price of Vine Hill’s and/or CoinShares’ securities; (2) the Transactions not being completed by Vine Hill’s business combination deadline; (3) failure by the parties to satisfy the conditions to the consummation of the Transactions, including the approval of Vine Hill’s and CoinShares’ shareholders and obtaining the requisite Acts of the Royal Court of Jersey; (4) failure to realize the anticipated benefits of the Transactions, which may be affected by, among other things, competition, the ability of CoinShares and Holdco to grow and manage growth profitably, build or maintain relationships with customers and retain management and key employees, capital expenditures, requirements for additional capital and timing of future cash flow provided by operating activities and the demand for digital assets, including cryptocurrencies and blockchain-related alternative investments, including those offered by, or underlying those offered by, CoinShares and Holdco; (5) the level of redemptions by Vine Hill’s public shareholders which will reduce the amount of funds available for CoinShares and Holdco to execute on their business strategies and may make it difficult to obtain or maintain the listing or trading of Holdco ordinary shares on a major securities exchange; (6) failure of Holdco to obtain or maintain the listing of its securities on any securities exchange after the closing; (7) costs related to the Transactions and as a result of Holdco becoming a public company that may be higher than currently anticipated; (8) changes in business, market, financial, political and regulatory conditions; (9) volatility and rapid fluctuations in the market prices of digital assets, including cryptocurrencies and blockchain-related alternative investments, including those offered by, or underlying those offered by, CoinShares and/or Holdco; (10) failure of CoinShares’ and/or Holdco’s digital asset investment products to track their respective target benchmarks; (11) regulatory or other developments that negatively impact demand for the products and services provided by CoinShares and/or Holdco; (12) the outcome of any event, change or other circumstance that could give rise to the inability to consummate the Business Combination; (13) the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against Vine Hill, CoinShares, Holdco and/or any of their respective affiliates or others; (14) changes to the proposed structure of the Business Combination that may be required or appropriate as a result of applicable laws or regulations; (15) the risk that the Business Combination disrupts current plans and operations of Vine Hill and/or CoinShares as a result of the announcement and consummation of the Business Combination; (16) treatment of digital assets, including cryptocurrencies and blockchain-related alternative investments, including those offered by, or underlying those offered by, CoinShares and/or Holdco, for U.S. and foreign tax purposes; (17) challenges in implementing CoinShares and/or Holdco’s business plan due to operational challenges, significant competition and regulation; (18) being considered to be a “shell company” or “former shell company” by the securities exchange on which Holdco ordinary shares will be listed or by the SEC, which may impact the ability to list Holdco ordinary shares and restrict reliance on certain rules or forms in connection with the offering, sale or resale of Holdco’s securities; (19) trading price and volume of Holdco ordinary shares may be volatile following the Transactions and an active trading market may not develop; (20) Holdco shareholders may experience dilution in the future due to the exercise of a significant number of existing warrants and any future issuances of equity securities of Holdco; (21) investors may experience immediate and material dilution upon the closing as a result of the Vine Hill Class B ordinary shares held by Vine Hill Capital Sponsor I LLC, since the value of the Holdco ordinary shares received by Vine Hill Capital Sponsor I LLC in exchange for such Vine Hill Class B ordinary shares is likely to be substantially higher than the nominal price paid for them, even if the trading price of Holdco ordinary shares at such time is substantially less than the price per share paid by investors; (22) conflicts of interest that may arise from investment and transaction opportunities involving Holdco, CoinShares, their respective affiliates and other investors and clients; (23) digital asset trading venues may experience greater fraud, security failures or regulatory or operational problems than trading venues for more established asset classes; (24) risks relating to the custody of CoinShares’ and Holdco’s digital assets, including the loss or destruction of private keys required to access its digital assets and cyberattacks or other data loss relating to its digital assets, which could cause CoinShares or Holdco, as applicable, to lose some or all of its digital assets; (25) a security breach, cyber-attack or other event where unauthorized parties obtain access to CoinShares’ or Holdco’s digital assets, as a result of which CoinShares or Holdco may lose some or all of their digital assets temporarily or permanently and their financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected; (26) the emergence or growth of other digital assets, including those with significant private or public sector backing, including by governments, consortiums or financial institutions, could have a negative impact on the value of digital assets and adversely affect CoinShares’ and/or Holdco’s business; (27) potential regulatory changes reclassifying certain digital assets as securities could lead to the CoinShares’ and/or Holdco’s classification as an “investment company” under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and could adversely affect the market price of CoinShares’ and/or Holdco’s digital assets and the market price of CoinShares or Holdco listed securities; and (28) other risks and uncertainties included in (x) the “Risk Factors” sections of the Vine Hill Annual Report on Form 10-K and (y) other documents filed or to be filed with or furnished or to be furnished to the SEC by Holdco, CoinShares and/or Vine Hill. The foregoing list of factors is not exclusive. You should not place undue reliance upon any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. None of Vine Hill, CoinShares or Holdco undertakes or accepts any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in their expectations or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which any such statement is based, except as required by law. Past performance by Vine Hill’s, CoinShares’ or Holdco’s management teams and their respective affiliates is not a guarantee of future performance. Therefore, you should not place undue reliance on the historical record of the performance of Vine Hill’s, CoinShares’ or Holdco’s management teams or businesses associated with them as indicative of future performance of an investment or the returns that Vine Hill, CoinShares or Holdco will, or are likely to, generate going forward.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
| Exhibit No. | Description | |
| 99.1 | Press Release dated October 8, 2025 | |
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document) |
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
Dated: October 8, 2025
| VINE HILL CAPITAL INVESTMENT CORP. | ||
| By: | /s/ Nicholas Petruska | |
| Name: | Nicholas Petruska | |
| Title: | Chief Executive Officer | |
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Exhibit 99.1
CoinShares Launches ETF Offering Access to Altcoins
New U.S. ETF provides diversified exposure to 10 of the leading altcoins beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum through a portfolio of crypto ETPs accessible via traditional brokerage accounts.
October 8, 2025 | SAINT HELIER, Jersey and FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA | Vine Hill Capital Investment Corp (Nasdaq: VCIC) announces that its merger partner CoinShares International Limited ("CoinShares" or "the Group") (Nasdaq Stockholm: CS; USOTCQX: CNSRF), CoinShares International Limited (“CoinShares'' or “the Group”) (Nasdaq Stockholm: CS; US OTCQX: CNSRF), a leading global asset manager specialising in digital assets with over $10 billion in AUM, yesterday announced the launch of the CoinShares Altcoins ETF (ticker: DIME), an innovative U.S. ETF designed to capture the altcoin opportunity through investors' existing brokerage accounts.
Breaking Down Altcoin Investment Barriers
At the moment, spot Bitcoin (BTC) and spot Ethereum (ETH) ETFs are the only cryptocurrency products available in the United States1, leaving approximately 70% of the crypto market inaccessible through traditional brokerages. DIME offers the ability to solve this gap for U.S. investors. The broader altcoin universe, where emerging opportunities may exist, requires direct crypto asset investment by way of often complex crypto exchange requirements. DIME is one of the first funds to offer exposure beyond BTC, ETH, and stablecoins, delivering diversified altcoin access directly through traditional brokerage accounts in a simple, familiar ETF wrapper.
Broad-Based Exposure Across Emerging Altcoins
DIME allocates investments equally across multiple ETPs holding different digital assets to reduce the risk of relying on a single cryptocurrency. DIME offers optionality across emerging Layer 1 alternatives,* spanning three investment themes: high-speed blockchains, interoperability protocols,** and growing platforms. DIME provides equally-weighted exposure to a basket of altcoins through investments in exchange traded products listed on public equity markets in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and the European Union. DIME’s initial investments will be focused on ETPs invested in Solana (SOL), Polkadot (DOT), Cardano (ADA), Cosmos (ATOM), Sei (SEI), Avalanche (AVAX), Sui (SUI), Aptos (APT), Near Protocol (NEAR), and Toncoin (TON).
| * | Layer 1 alternative blockchains are the foundational networks that run on their own technology and handle transactions directly, without depending on another blockchain. |
| ** | Interoperability protocols are technologies that let different blockchains talk to each other and share information. |
| 1 | McGee, S. (2025, September 18). SEC paves way for crypto spot ETFs with new listing rules. Reuters. |
https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/sec-paves-way-crypto-spot-etfs-with-new-listing-rules-2025-09-18/
Risk-Managed Framework
DIME aims to track the performance of the CoinShares-Compass Altcoins Index, which employs equal weighting across its constituents with quarterly rebalancing, preventing concentration risk while systematically trimming overperformers and adding to underperformers — a disciplined approach for volatile markets.
"The altcoin market represents some of blockchain's most innovative developments, but accessing these opportunities through traditional channels in the United States has been nearly impossible," said Jean-Marie Mognetti, CoinShares' CEO. "DIME changes that as part of our U.S. market expansion, bringing diversified altcoin exposure directly to American investors' brokerage accounts for the first time.”"
Key Features
| ● | Brokerage Integration: Among the first U.S. altcoin ETF aiming to provide diversification through standard investment accounts. |
| ● | Maximum Optionality: Equal exposure to a selection of Layer 1 blockchains across multiple investment themes. |
| ● | Risk Management: Equal weighting with quarterly rebalancing aimed to prevent undue concentration - allowing clear risk budgeting. |
| ● | Waived Management Fee: CoinShares has contractually agreed to waive the 0.95% gross expense for the Fund on asset under management up to $1 billion through September 30, 2026, unless earlier amended or terminated by the Trust’s Board of Trustees on behalf of the Fund. |
| ● | Familiar Structure: Built using ETPs listed on U.S., Canadian, U.K. and European public equity exchanges. |
DIME addresses growing demand for cryptocurrency diversification beyond BTC and ETH, eliminating the complexity of managing crypto wallets while providing familiar ETF transparency and oversight.
DIME will be available for trading on Nasdaq beginning October 7, 2025. For more information about DIME and its investment strategy, please visit: coinshares.com/us/etf/DIME The Index is a diversified digital asset index which seeks to track the performance of a basket of Altcoins that are the native tokens of Layer 1 Digital Asset Protocols.
About the CoinShares Compass Index
The Index is composed of an equally weighted combination of the most representative and liquid Altcoins satisfying the Index’s eligibility requirements (the “Component
Altcoins”). In order to obtain exposure to the Component Altcoins, DIME will invest in the securities of (i) exchange-traded products, exchange-traded notes (“ETNs”) or (ii) other exchange-traded pooled investment vehicles. DIME will provide equally-weighted exposure to the Component Altcoins selected for inclusion in the Fund’s portfolio.
About CoinShares
CoinShares is a leading global digital asset manager that delivers a broad range of financial services across investment management, trading and securities to a wide array of clients that include corporations, financial institutions and individuals. Founded in 2013, the firm is headquartered in Jersey, with offices in France, Stockholm, the UK, and the US. CoinShares is regulated in Jersey by the Jersey Financial Services Commission, in France by the Autorité des marchés financiers, in the U.S by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. CoinShares is publicly listed on the Nasdaq Stockholm under the ticker CS and the OTCQX under the ticker CNSRF.
For
more information on CoinShares, please visit: https://coinshares.com
Company | +44 (0)1534 513 100 | enquiries@coinshares.com
Investor Relations | +44 (0)1534 513 100 | enquiries@coinshares.com Risk of Reduced Returns due to Fees.
PRESS CONTACT
CoinShares
Benoît Pellevoizin
bpellevoizin@coinshares.com
M Group Strategic Communications
Peter Padovano
coinshares@mgroupsc.com
Disclosure & Risks
Investing involves various levels of risk. The loss of principal is possible. You should consider the Fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses before investing. The fund may not be suitable for all investors. The prospectus contains this and other important information, and it may be obtained at https://coinshares.com/us/etf/documents/. You should read it carefully before investing.
Shares of ETFs are bought and sold at market price (not NAV) and are not individually redeemed from the Fund. Applicable brokerage fees and commissions will likely reduce returns.
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed portfolio. The Adviser will apply investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objective.
Exchange-Traded Products (“ETPs”) Risk. The Fund is subject to the same risks as those associated with the direct ownership of the investments held or represented by the ETPs in which it invests. In addition, the shares of certain ETPs may trade at a premium or discount to their intrinsic value (i.e., the market value may differ from the net asset value of an ETP’s shares) for a number of reasons. For example, supply and demand for shares of an ETP or market disruptions may cause the market price of the ETP to deviate from the value of the ETP’s investments, which may be exacerbated in less liquid markets. The value of an ETP may also differ from the valuation of its reference market due to changes in the issuer’s credit rating.
Exchange-Traded Notes (“ETNs”) Risk. The Fund’s investments in cryptocurrency-linked instruments may include investments in ETPs, such as ETFs and ETNs. ETNs are senior, unsecured, unsubordinated debt securities whose returns are linked to the performance of a particular market benchmark or strategy, minus applicable fees. ETNs are traded on an exchange during normal trading hours. However, investors can also hold the ETN until maturity. At maturity, the issuer pays to the investor a cash amount equal to the principal amount, subject to the day’s market benchmark or strategy factor.
ETNs do not make periodic coupon payments or provide principal protection. ETNs are subject to credit risk, and the value of the ETN may drop due to a downgrade in the issuer’s credit rating, despite the underlying market benchmark or strategy remaining unchanged. The value of an ETN may also be influenced by time to maturity, level of supply and demand for the ETN, volatility and lack of liquidity in underlying assets, changes in the applicable interest rates, changes in the issuer’s credit rating, and economic, legal, political, or geographic events that affect the referenced underlying asset. When the Fund invests in ETNs, it will bear its proportionate share of any fees and expenses borne by the ETN. The Fund’s decision to sell ETN holdings may be limited by the availability of a secondary market. ETNs are also subject to tax risk. There may be times when an ETN share trades at a premium or discount to its market benchmark or strategy.
Digital Asset Investing Risk. The Fund is indirectly exposed to the risks of investing in digital assets through its investments in the ETPs. Digital assets are a new and highly speculative asset class. The risks associated with digital assets include the following:
Evolving Asset Risk. Digital assets are a new technological innovation with a limited history. There is no assurance that usage of digital assets will continue to grow. A contraction in use of digital assets may result in increased volatility or a reduction in the price of the ETPs, which could adversely impact the value of the Fund. The Bitcoin Network, the protocol for bitcoin, the first digital asset, was launched in January 2009, platform trading in bitcoin began in 2010, and Bitcoin Futures trading began in 2017. Other digital assets tracked by the ETPs were launched more recently which may limit a potential shareholder’s ability to evaluate an investment in the Fund.
The Fund’s investments are exposed to risks associated with the price of digital assets, which are subject to numerous factors and risks, including:
| ● | The total and available supply of digital assets, including the possibility that small groups of early adopters hold a significant proportion of the digital asset supplies and that sales of digital assets by such large holders may negatively impact the price of digital assets; |
| ● | Global demand for digital assets, which is influenced by the growth of retail merchants’ and commercial businesses’ acceptance of digital assets as payment for goods and services, the security of online exchanges and public addresses that hold digital assets, the perception that the use and holding of digital assets is safe and secure, the lack of regulatory restrictions on their use, and the reputation regarding the use of digital assets for illicit purposes; |
| ● | Global digital asset supply, which is influenced by similar factors as global digital asset demand, in addition to fiat currency (i.e., government currency not backed by an asset such as gold) needs by miners, stakers, and taxpayers who may liquidate digital asset holdings to meet tax obligations; |
| ● | Investors’ expectations with respect to the rate of inflation of fiat currencies; |
| ● | Foreign exchange rates between fiat currencies and digital assets; |
| ● | Interest rates; |
| ● | The continued operation of digital asset exchanges in the United States and foreign jurisdictions, including regulatory status, trading and custody policies, and cyber security; |
| ● | Investment and trading activities of large investors, including private and registered funds, that may directly or indirectly invest in digital assets; |
| ● | Regulatory measures, if any, that restrict the use of digital assets as a form of payment or the purchase or sale of digital assets, including measures that restrict the direct or indirect participation in the digital asset markets by financial institutions or the introduction of digital asset instruments; |
| ● | The maintenance and development of the open-source software protocols of various digital assets; |
| ● | Increased competition from other cryptocurrencies and digital assets, including forks of existing digital asset networks; |
| ● | Global or regional political, economic or financial events and situations; |
| ● | Investor or participant sentiments on the value or utility of digital assets; and |
| ● | The mining or staking activities of participants on digital asset networks and the willingness of participants to clear transactions on digital asset networks. |
Negative developments with respect to any of these factors could adversely impact an investment in the Fund.
This is a new ETF with limited operating history.
The risks of digital assets include:
| ● | Being subject to unique and substantial risks, including significant price volatility and lack of liquidity. The value of digital assets may decline significantly without warning, including to zero. |
| ● | Being largely unregulated’ |
| ● | Digital asset-linked investments, including the ETPs, being more susceptible to fraud and manipulation than more regulated investments. |
| ● | Being unable to obtain exposure to digital asset-linked investments consistent with their investment objectives being disrupted for any reason, including as a result of a lack of liquidity, volatility, or a disruption in the digital asset or digital asset futures market, or as a result of margin requirements, position limits, or other conditions, factors, or limitations of a particular fund, the fund may not be able to achieve its investment objective and may experience significant losses. |
Diversification does not guarantee against a loss.
The Fund is distributed by ALPS Distributors, Inc.
6