UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-Q
☒ Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2025
OR
☐ Transition report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
for the transition period from _________ to _________
Commission File Number: 001-42511
| Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF |
| (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter) |
| Delaware | 33-2103856 | |
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
19 West 44th Street, Suite 200
New York, NY 10036
(Address of principal executive offices, telephone number, including area code)
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (866) 403-5272
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of Each Class | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered | ||
| Shares of Beneficial Interest of Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF | NCIQ | The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC |
Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. ☒ Yes ☐ No
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). ☒ Yes ☐ No
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | ☐ | Accelerated filer | ☐ |
| Non-accelerated Filer | ☒ | Smaller reporting company | ☒ |
| 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. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). ☐ Yes ☒ No
As of September 30, 2025, there were 4,970,000 shares of beneficial interest, no par value, of Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF issued and outstanding.
STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This quarterly report on Form 10-Q includes statements which relate to future events or future performance. In some cases, you can identify such forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “could,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. All statements (other than statements of historical fact) included in this prospectus that address activities, events or developments that may occur in the future, including such matters as changes in crypto asset markets and indexes that track such movements, the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF’s (the “Trust’s”) operations, the Hashdex Asset Management Ltd.’s (the “Sponsor’s”) plans and references to the Trust’s future success and other similar matters are forward-looking statements. These statements are only predictions. Actual events or results may differ materially. These statements are based upon certain assumptions and analyses made by the Sponsor on the basis of its perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors it believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Whether or not actual results and developments will conform to the Sponsor’s expectations and predictions, however, is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including the special considerations discussed in this prospectus, general economic, market and business conditions, changes in laws or regulations, including those concerning taxes, made by governmental authorities or regulatory bodies, and other world economic and political developments. See “Risk Factors”. Consequently, all the forward-looking statements made in this prospectus are qualified by these cautionary statements, and there can be no assurance that the actual results or developments the Sponsor anticipates will be realized or, even if substantially realized, will result in the expected consequences to, or have the expected effects on, the Trust’s operations or the value of the Shares.
Should one or more of these risks discussed in “Risk Factors” or other uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual outcomes may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. None of the Trust, the Sponsor, or U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC (d/b/a U.S. Bank Global Fund Services) (the “Administrator”) or their respective affiliates is under a duty to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform such statements to actual results or to a change in the Sponsor’s expectations or predictions, other than as required by applicable laws. Investors are cautioned against placing undue reliance on forward-looking statements.
EMERGING GROWTH COMPANY
The Trust is an “emerging growth company” as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”). For as long as the Trust is an emerging growth company, unlike other public companies, it will not be required to, among other things: (i) provide an auditor’s attestation report on management’s assessment of the effectiveness of our system of internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002; or (ii) comply with any new audit rules adopted by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (“PCAOB”) after April 5, 2012, unless the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) determines otherwise.
The Trust will cease to be an “emerging growth company” upon the earliest of: (i) it having $1.235 billion or more in annual gross revenues, (ii) the date on which the Trust is deemed to be a “large accelerated filer,” (iii) it issuing more than $1.0 billion of non-convertible debt over a three-year period; or (iv) the last day of the fiscal year following the fifth anniversary of its initial public offering.
In addition, Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an emerging growth company can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), for complying with new or revised accounting standards. In other words, an emerging growth company can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. The Trust intends to take advantage of the benefits of the extended transition period.
Table of Contents
| Page | ||
| Part I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION | ||
| Item 1. | Financial Statements (Unaudited) | 1 |
| Item 2. | Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations | 2 |
| Item 3. | Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk | 8 |
| Item 4. | Controls and Procedures | 8 |
| Part II. OTHER INFORMATION | ||
| Item 1. | Legal Proceedings | 9 |
| Item 1A. | Risk Factors | 9 |
| Item 2. | Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds | 9 |
| Item 3. | Defaults Upon Senior Securities | 9 |
| Item 4. | Mine Safety Disclosures | 9 |
| Item 5. | Other Information | 9 |
| Item 6. | Exhibits | 10 |
Part I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Item 1. Financial Statements.
Index to Financial Statements
Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF
Statement of Assets and Liabilities
| September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
||||
| ASSETS | ||||
| Investments in Crypto Assets, at fair value (cost $114,007,659) | $ | 153,386,798 | ||
| Cash | 194,158 | |||
| Receivable for investments sold | 1,828,970 | |||
| Receivable for fund shares sold | 1,853,724 | |||
| Total Assets | 157,263,650 | |||
| LIABILITIES | ||||
| Payable for investments purchased | 3,694,402 | |||
| Management fee payable | 30,298 | |||
| Total Liabilities | 3,724,700 | |||
| NET ASSETS | $ | 153,538,950 | ||
| NET ASSETS CONSIST OF: | ||||
| Paid-in capital | $ | 113,154,222 | ||
| Total distributable earnings (accumulated deficit) | 40,384,728 | |||
| NET ASSETS | $ | 153,538,950 | ||
| Net Asset Value (unlimited shares authorized): | ||||
| Total Fund (unlimited shares authorized): | ||||
| 4,970,000 | ||||
| Net Asset Value per Share | $ | 30.89 | ||
| * | No comparative statement shown/provided as it is the Trust’s first fiscal year of operations. |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
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Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF
SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS
September 30, 2025*
(Unaudited)
| Description: Assets | Fair Value | Percentage of Net Assets |
Quantity | |||||||||
| Crypto Assets | ||||||||||||
| Bitcoin | $ | 111,972,694 | 72.93 | % | 978 | |||||||
| Ether | 22,359,447 | 14.56 | % | 5,374 | ||||||||
| XRP | 10,455,149 | 6.81 | % | 3,647,484 | ||||||||
| Solana | 6,276,129 | 4.09 | % | 30,067 | ||||||||
| Cardano | 1,824,624 | 1.19 | % | 2,279,925 | ||||||||
| Stellar | 498,755 | 0.32 | % | 1,358,265 | ||||||||
| Total Crypto Assets (cost $ $114,007,659) | $ | 153,386,798 | 99.90 | % | ||||||||
| Total Investments (cost $ $114,007,659) | $ | 153,386,798 | 99.90 | % | ||||||||
| Other Assets in Excess of Liabilities | 152,152 | 0.10 | % | |||||||||
| Total Net Assets | $ | 153,538,950 | 100.00 | % | ||||||||
| * | No comparative statement shown/provided as it is the Trust’s first fiscal year of operations. |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
F-
Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF
Statements of Operations
| For the 3 (three) months ended September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
For the period January 21, 2025 (initial seed creation date) through September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
|||||||
| INVESTMENT INCOME | ||||||||
| Income: | ||||||||
| Interest income | $ | 6 | $ | 6 | ||||
| Total Income | 6 | 6 | ||||||
| Expenses: | ||||||||
| Management fees | 180,309 | 338,372 | ||||||
| Other | 50 | |||||||
| Total Expenses | 180,309 | 338,422 | ||||||
| Less waiver | (90,154 | ) | (169,186 | ) | ||||
| Net Expenses | 90,155 | 169,236 | ||||||
| Net Investment Loss | (90,149 | ) | (169,230 | ) | ||||
| REALIZED AND CHANGE IN UNREALIZED GAIN (LOSS) | ||||||||
| Net realized gain | 1,373,408 | 1,174,819 | ||||||
| Net change in unrealized appreciation | 15,176,119 | 39,379,139 | ||||||
| Net realized and change in unrealized gain (loss) | 16,549,527 | 40,553,958 | ||||||
| NET INCREASE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM OPERATIONS | $ | 16,459,378 | $ | 40,384,728 | ||||
| * | No comparative statement shown/provided as it is the Trust’s first fiscal year of operations. |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
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Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF
Statements of Changes in Net Assets
| For the 3 (three) months ended September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
For the period January 21, 2025 (initial seed creation date) through September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
|||||||
| INCREASE (DECREASE) IN NET ASSETS: | ||||||||
| OPERATIONS | ||||||||
| Net investment loss | $ | (90,149 | ) | $ | (169,230 | ) | ||
| Net realized gain | 1,373,408 | 1,174,819 | ||||||
| Net change in unrealized appreciation | 15,176,119 | 39,379,139 | ||||||
| Net increase in net assets resulting from operations | 16,459,378 | 40,384,728 | ||||||
| CAPITAL SHARE TRANSACTIONS | ||||||||
| Shares issued | 14,236,965 | 117,230,129 | ||||||
| Shares redeemed | (2,765,922 | ) | (4,075,907 | ) | ||||
| Net increase in net assets from capital share transactions | 11,471,043 | 113,154,222 | ||||||
| Total increase in net assets | $ | 27,930,421 | $ | 153,538,950 | ||||
| NET ASSETS | ||||||||
| Beginning of Period | $ | 125,608,529 | $ | |||||
| End of Period | $ | 153,538,950 | $ | 153,538,950 | ||||
| * | No comparative statement shown/provided as it is the Trust’s first fiscal year of operations. |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
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Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (UNAUDITED)
| 1. | Organization |
Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF (the “Trust”) is a Delaware statutory trust organized on July 12, 2024. The Trust operates pursuant to the Third Amended and Restated Trust Agreement dated September 18, 2025. The Trust is registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (together with the rules and regulations adopted thereunder, as amended, the “1933 Act”). The Trust was formed and is managed and controlled by the Sponsor. The sponsor of the Trust is Hashdex Asset Management Ltd. (the “Sponsor”). CSC Delaware Trust Company is the trustee of the Trust (the “Trustee”).
The Trust is designed to provide investors with price exposure to certain crypto assets, namely, those included in the Nasdaq Crypto US Settlement Price™ Index (NCIUSS) (the “Index”). NCIUSS is a daily closing value of the Nasdaq Crypto US™ Index (NCIUS), which is designed to measure the performance of a material portion of the overall crypto asset market. The Trust issues shares representing units of fractional undivided beneficial interests (“Shares”) that trade on The Nasdaq Stock Market, LLC (the “Exchange”) under the symbol “NCIQ”. The Trust commenced operations on February 14, 2025. Shares can be purchased and sold by investors through their broker-dealer. Purchasing Shares of the Trust is subject to the risks of crypto assets and crypto asset markets as well as the additional risks of investing in the Trust.
The Trust’s investment objective is to align the daily changes in the Shares’ net asset value (“NAV”) with the daily price changes of the Index, minus operational expenses and liabilities, by investing in the index constituents (“Index Constituents”). Because the Trust’s investment objective is to track the price of the Index, changes in the price of the Shares may vary from changes in the Index Constituents’ prices.
An investment in the Trust is subject to the risks of an investment in the Index Constituents of which are subject to a high degree of price variability, as well as to the risks of crypto asset markets more generally. An investment in the Trust may be riskier than other exchange-traded products that do not directly hold crypto assets, or financial instruments related to crypto, and may not be suitable for all investors. In addition, the Index Constituents may experience pronounced and swift price changes. Accordingly, there is a potential for change in the price of Shares between the time an investor places an order to purchase or sell with its broker-dealer and the time of the actual purchase or sale resulting from the price volatility of Index Constituents.
The Index will be reconstituted and rebalanced quarterly, on the first Business Day in March, June, September, and December to align the weightings of the Index Constituents with the index methodology published by Nasdaq.
The statement of assets and liabilities and schedule of investments at September 30, 2025, and the statements of operations and changes in net assets for the 3 months ended September 30, 2025 and for the period from January 21, 2025 through September 30, 2025, have been prepared on behalf of the Trust and are unaudited. In the opinion of management of the Sponsor of the Trust, all adjustments (which include normal recurring adjustments) necessary to present fairly the financial position and results of operations for the 3 months ended September 30, 2025 and for the period from January 21, 2025 through September 30,2025, and for all interim periods presented have been made. In addition, interim period results are not necessarily indicative of results for a full-year period.
The fiscal year end of the Trust is December 31st.
F-
| 2. | Significant Accounting Policies |
The following is a summary of significant accounting policies consistently followed by the Trust in the preparation of these financial statements.
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and are stated in U.S. Dollars. The Trust is an investment company and accordingly follows the investment company accounting and reporting guidance of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 946, Financial Services — Investment Companies.
Use of Estimates
The preparation of the financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statement and the reported amounts of income and expenses during the reported period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
Cash
Cash includes non-interest bearing non-restricted cash with one institution and is subject to credit risk to the extent its balance exceeds the federally insured limits. At September 30, 2025, the Trust’s balance did not exceed the federally insured limits.
Investment Transactions and Investment Income
For financial statement purposes, the Trust records investment transactions on the trade date of the investment purchase or sale. Gains and losses realized on sales of investments are determined by the specific identification method. Investments made by the Trust intend to be limited to investments in Index Constituents and cash and cash equivalents. Interest income is recorded on an accrual basis.
Federal Income Taxes
The Trust is not subject to federal income taxes; each shareholder reports his/her allocable share of income, gain, loss, deductions or credits on his/her own income tax return. In accordance with GAAP, the Trust is required to determine whether a tax position is more likely than not to be sustained upon examination by the applicable taxing authority, including resolution of any tax related appeals or litigation processes, based on the technical merits of the position. The Trust files an income tax return in the U.S. federal jurisdiction and may file income tax returns in various U.S. states. The tax benefit recognized is measured as the largest amount of benefit that has a greater than fifty percent likelihood of being realized upon ultimate settlement. De-recognition of a tax benefit previously recognized results in the Trust recording a tax liability that reduces net assets. However, the Trust’s conclusions regarding this policy may be subject to review and adjustment at a later date based on factors including, but not limited to, on-going analysis of and changes to tax laws, regulations and interpretations thereof. The Trust recognizes interest accrued related to unrecognized tax benefits and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits in income tax fees payable, if assessed. No interest expense or penalties have been recognized as of and for the period ended September 30, 2025.
F-
Valuation of Crypto Assets
In determining the value of the Trust’s holdings, the Trust will value the Index Constituents held by the Trust at fair value. Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date.
The Trust identifies and determines the Trust’s principal market (or in the absence of a principal market, the most advantageous market) for crypto assets consistent with the application of fair value measurement framework in FASB ASC 820-10 “Fair Value Measurement”. The principal market is the market with the greatest volume and level of activity that can be accessed.
The Trust’s valuation procedures provide for the designation of the Sponsor to determine the valuation sources and policies to prepare the Trust’s financial statements in accordance with GAAP. The Trust obtains relevant volume and level of activity information and based on initial analysis will select an exchange market as the Trust’s principal market. The NAV and NAV per Share will be calculated using the fair value of the Index Constituents held by the Trust based on the price provided by this exchange market, as of 4:00 p.m. New York time on the measurement date for GAAP purposes. The Trust will update its principal market analysis periodically and as needed to the extent that events have occurred, or activities have changed in a manner that could change the Trust’s determination of the principal market.
The Trust utilizes various inputs to determine the fair value of its investments on a recurring basis. GAAP establishes a hierarchy that prioritizes inputs to valuations methods. The three levels of inputs are:
Level 1 – Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that the Trust has the ability to access.
Level 2 – Observable inputs other than quoted prices included in Level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly. These inputs may include quoted prices for the identical instrument on an inactive market, prices for similar instruments, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, yield curves, default rates and similar data.
Level 3 – Unobservable inputs for the asset or liability, to the extent relevant observable inputs are not available; representing the Trust’s own assumptions about the assumptions a market participant would use in valuing the asset or liability, and would be based on the best information available.
The following table summarizes the valuation of investments at September 30, 2025* using the fair value hierarchy:
| Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Total | |||||||||||||
| Crypto Assets | $ | 153,386,798 | $ | $ | $ | 153,386,798 | ||||||||||
| Total | $ | 153,386,798 | $ | $ | $ | 153,386,798 | ||||||||||
| * | No comparative schedule shown/provided as it is the Trust’s first fiscal year of operations. |
There were no transfers between Level 1 and other Levels for the period ended September 30, 2025.
The cost basis of the investment of crypto assets recorded by the Trust for financial reporting purposes is the fair value of such crypto asset at the time of purchase. The cost basis recorded by the Trust may differ from proceeds collected by the Authorized Participant from the sale of the corresponding Shares to investors.
Calculation of NAV and NAV per Share
The Sponsor or its delegate shall calculate the Trust’s NAV each Business Day as of the earlier of the close of the Nasdaq or 4:00 p.m. New York time. As such, the NAV is calculated based on the value of the index price at 4:00 p.m. The assets of the Trust consist of the crypto assets held by the Trust that follows Nasdaq Crypto US Settlement Price Index (“NCIUSS”),, cash and cash equivalents. The Sponsor has the exclusive authority to determine the Trust’s NAV, which it has delegated to the Administrator.
The Trust’s NAV per Share is calculated by taking the current fair value of its total assets, subtracting any liabilities, and dividing that total by the number of Shares.
Segment Reporting
The Chief Financial Officer of the Sponsor acts as the Trust’s Chief Operating Decision Maker (“CODM”) and is responsible for assessing performance and allocating resources with respect to the Trust. The CODM has concluded that the Trust operates as a single operating segment since the Trust has a single investment strategy as disclosed in its prospectus, against which the CODM assesses performance. The financial information provided to and reviewed by the CODM is presented within the Trust’s financial statements.
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| 3. | Investment in Crypto Assets |
The following represents the changes in fair value of crypto assets held during the period from January 21, 2025, through September 30, 2025*:
Crypto assets of the Index Constituents
| For the three months ended September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
For the period January 21, 2025^ through September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
|||||||
| Balance at July 1,2025 and January 21, 2025, respectively | $ | 125,567,730 | $ | |||||
| Purchases | 33,216,900 | $ | 135,948,157 | |||||
| Sales | (21,947,358 | ) | (23,115,317 | ) | ||||
| Realized Gain (Loss) | 1,373,407 | 1,174,819 | ||||||
| Change in Unrealized Gain (Loss) | 15,176,119 | $ | 39,379,139 | |||||
| Balance at September 30, 2025 | 153,386,798 | $ | 153,386,798 | |||||
| * | No comparative schedule shown/provided as it is the Trust’s first fiscal year of operations |
| ^ | Initial seed creation date |
| 4. | Trust Expenses and Other Agreements |
Sponsor
The Trust pays the Sponsor a Management Fee, monthly in arrears, in an amount equal to 0.50% per annum of the daily NAV of the Trust. The Management Fee is paid in consideration of the Sponsor’s services related to the management of the Trust’s business and affairs. The Management Fee is paid directly by the Trust to the Sponsor. The Management Fee accrues daily and is payable monthly in cash. The Trust intends to sell its holdings to pay the Management fee.
The Sponsor has agreed to temporarily reduce its Management Fee to 0.25% per annum through December 31, 2025. After December 31, 2025, the standard 0.50% annual Management Fee rate will apply.
In addition to the Trust’s Management Fee, the Trust pays all of its respective brokerage commissions, including applicable exchange fees and give-up fees, and other transaction related fees and expenses charged in connection with trading activities. The Trust also pays all fees and commissions related to any crypto transaction fees for on-chain transfers of assets. The Sponsor pays all other routine operational, administrative and other ordinary expenses of the Trust, including but not limited to, fees and expenses of the administrator, custodians, marketing agent, transfer agent, trustees, licensors, accounting and audit fees and expenses, tax preparation expenses, legal fees, ongoing SEC registration fees, individual Schedule K-1 preparation and mailing fees, and report preparation and mailing expenses. The Trust pays all of its non-recurring and unusual fees and expenses, if any, as determined by the Sponsor. Non-recurring and unusual fees and expenses are unexpected or unusual in nature, such as legal claims and liabilities and litigation costs or indemnification or other unanticipated expenses. Extraordinary fees and expenses also include material expenses which are not currently anticipated obligations of the Trust. Routine operational, administrative and other ordinary expenses are not deemed extraordinary expenses. In the event the Trust’s cash balance is insufficient to pay all fees and expenses, including the Management Fee, the Trust may need to sell crypto assets from time to time to pay for fees and expenses.
F-
Initial costs and expenses related to the initial offer and sale of Shares were borne by the Sponsor.
Non-recurring, unusual or extraordinary expenses of the Trust will be allocated as determined by the Sponsor using a pro rata allocation methodology that allocates such Trust expenses to the Trust. Unusual or extraordinary expenses paid by Sponsor are not subject to any caps or limits. The Trust may be required to indemnify the Sponsor, and the Trust and/or the Sponsor may be required to indemnify the Trustee, marketing agent, administrator, custodians, and the transfer agent under certain unusual or extraordinary circumstances. Any indemnification paid by the Trust and/or Sponsor generally would cover losses incurred by an indemnified party for (1) expenses incurred by a party when rendering services to the Trust or the Sponsor, (2) expenses arising from a breach of obligations or non-compliance with laws, or (3) expenses arising out of the formation, operation or termination of the Trust. Unless such expenses are specifically attributable to the Trust or arise out of the Trust’s operations, any such expenses will be allocated by the Sponsor using a pro rata methodology that allocates certain Trust expenses to the Trust.
Administrator, Custodians and Transfer Agent
U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Administrator”) serves as administrator, transfer agent and accounting agent of the Trust pursuant to a Fund Servicing Agreement. U.S. Bank N.A. (the “Cash Custodian”), an affiliate of the Administrator, serves as the Trust’s cash custodian pursuant to a Custody Agreement. Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC and BitGo Trust Company, Inc (the “Custodians”) keeps custody of all of the Trust’s crypto assets, on behalf of the Trust. In June 2025, the Fund entered into a custody services agreement with Fidelity Digital Asset Services, LLC to provide custodial services for digital assets. As of September 30, 2025, the Fund has not commenced using these custodial services.
Marketing Agent
The Trust employs Paralel Distributors LLC as the marketing agent for the Trust. The marketing agent is not entitled to compensation or reimbursement of expenses from the Trust, with any such remuneration to be paid by the Sponsor, out of the management fee it receives for its services to the Trust. The term of the agreement is three years, with provisions for automatic renewal and termination options available to both parties.
| 5. | Capital Share Transactions |
The Trust creates and redeems Shares on a continuous basis but only in baskets of 10,000 Shares. Only authorized participants, which are registered broker-dealers who have entered into written agreements with the Sponsor and/or the Trust, can place orders to receive baskets in exchange for cash.
The Sponsor and the Trust engage in crypto asset transactions for converting cash into Index Constituents to track NCIUSS (in association with purchase orders) and crypto assets into cash (in association with redemption orders). The Administrator calculates the cost to purchase (or sell in the case of a redemption order) the amount of the Index Constituents represented by the baskets being created (or redeemed). The amount of Index Constituents is equal to the combined NAV of the number of Shares included in the baskets being created (or redeemed) determined as of 4:00 p.m. New York time on the day the order to create or redeem baskets is properly received.
Only authorized participants may place orders to create and redeem baskets through the transfer agent. The transfer agent coordinates with the Trust’s custodians in order to facilitate settlement of the Shares and the Index Constituents.
Capital share transactions in the Trust were as follows:
| For the 3 (three) months ended September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
For the period January 21, 2025 (initial seed creation date) through September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
|||||||
| Shares issued | 470,000 | 5,120,000 | ||||||
| Shares redeemed | (90,000 | ) | (150,000 | ) | ||||
| Net increase | 380,000 | 4,970,000 | ||||||
| * | No comparative statement shown/provided as it is the Trust’s first fiscal year of operations. |
F-
| 6. | Related Parties |
The Sponsor is considered to be a related party to the Trust. The Trust’s operations are supported by its Sponsor. The Sponsor provided the initial capital of $250,000 for the initial sale of 10,000 shares to the Sponsor. Subsequently, the initial capital of 10,000 shares and $250,000 was redeemed on February 13, 2025.
As of September 30, 2025, the Trust has a liability to the Sponsor of $30,298 for the September Management Fee.
The Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index Fund (NCI), a Fund managed by the Sponsor, holds 4,000,000 shares.
The Sponsor arranged for the creation of the Trust and is responsible for the ongoing registration of the Shares for their public offering in the United States and the listing of Shares on the Exchange.
| 7. | Indemnification |
The Sponsor will not be liable to the Trust, the Trustee or any Shareholder for any action taken or for refraining from taking any action in good faith, or for errors in judgment or for depreciation or loss incurred by reason of the sale of any bitcoin or other assets of the Trust. However, the preceding liability exclusion will not protect the Sponsor against any liability resulting from its own gross negligence, bad faith, or willful misconduct.
The Sponsor and each of its shareholders, members, directors, officers, employees, affiliates, and subsidiaries will be indemnified by the Trust and held harmless against any losses, liabilities or expenses incurred in the performance of its duties under the Declaration of Trust without gross negligence, bad faith, or willful misconduct. The Sponsor may rely in good faith on any paper, order, notice, list, affidavit, receipt, evaluation, opinion, endorsement, assignment, draft, or any other document of any kind prima facie properly executed and submitted to it by the Trustee, the Trustee’s counsel or by any other person for any matters arising under the Declaration of Trust. The Sponsor shall in no event be deemed to have assumed or incurred any liability, duty, or obligation to any Shareholder or to the Trustee other than as expressly provided for in the Declaration of Trust. Such indemnity includes payment from the Trust of the costs and expenses incurred in defending against any indemnified claim or liability under the Declaration of Trust.
The Trustee will not be liable or accountable to the Trust or any other person or under any agreement to which the Trust or any series of the Trust is a party, except for the Trustee’s breach of its obligations pursuant to the Declaration of Trust or its own willful misconduct, bad faith or gross negligence. The Trustee and each of the Trustee’s officers, affiliates, directors, employees, and agents will be indemnified by the Trust from and against any losses, claims, taxes, damages, reasonable expenses, and liabilities incurred with respect to the creation, operation or termination of the Trust, the execution, delivery or performance of the Declaration of Trust or the transactions contemplated thereby; provided that the indemnified party acted without willful misconduct, bad faith or gross negligence.
| 8. | Commitments and Contingent Liabilities |
In the normal course of business, the Trust may enter into contracts that contain a variety of general indemnification clauses. The Trust’s maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown as this would involve future claims that may be made against the Trust which have not yet occurred and cannot be predicted with any certainty. However, the Sponsor believes the risk of loss under these arrangements to be remote.
F-
| 9. | Concentration Risk |
The majority of all of the Trust’s assets are holdings of bitcoin, which creates a concentration risk associated with fluctuations in the price of bitcoin. Accordingly, a decline in the price of bitcoin will have an adverse effect on the value of the Shares of the Trust. Factors that may have the effect of causing a decline in the price of bitcoin include negative perception of crypto assets; a lack of stability and standardized regulation in the crypto asset markets; the closure or temporary shutdown of digital asset platforms due to fraud, business failure, security breaches or government mandated regulation; and a loss of investor confidence.
| 10. | Financial Highlights* |
| For the 3 (three) months ended September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
For the period January 21, 2025 (initial seed creation date) through September 30, 2025* (Unaudited) |
|||||||
| Net Asset Value Per Share Performance (for a Share outstanding throughout the period presented), Beginning of Period | $ | 27.37 | $ | 25.00 | ||||
| Net investment loss (1) | $ | (0.02 | ) | $ | (0.04 | ) | ||
| Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss) | $ | 3.54 | $ | 5.93 | ||||
| Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets from Operations | $ | 3.52 | $ | 5.89 | ||||
| Net Asset Value Per Share Performance (for a Share outstanding throughout the period presented), End of Period | $ | 30.89 | $ | 30.89 | ||||
| Market Value Per Share, at September 30, 2025 (2) | $ | 30.88 | $ | 30.88 | ||||
| Total Return at Net Asset Value (3) | 12.86 | % | 23.57 | % | ||||
| Total Return at Market Value (3) | 12.57 | % | 23.52 | % | ||||
| Ratios to Average Net Assets: (4) | ||||||||
| Gross Expense ratio | 0.50 | % | 0.50 | %(5) | ||||
| Net Expense ratio | 0.25 | % | 0.25 | %(5) | ||||
| Net Investment Loss | (0.25 | )% | (0.25 | )%(5) | ||||
| * | No comparative schedule shown/provided as it is the Trust’s first fiscal year of operations. |
| (1) | Net investment loss per share represents net investment loss divided by the daily average shares of beneficial interest outstanding during the period. |
| (2) | Market values are determined at the close of the applicable primary listing exchange, which may be later than when the Trust’s net asset value is calculated. |
| (3) | Percentages are not annualized. |
| (4) | Percentages are annualized. |
| (5) | Includes activity for the period February 14, 2025 (effective date) through September 30, 2025. |
| 11. | Subsequent Events |
On October 7, 2025, the Trust, entered into a Master Infrastructure-as-a-Service Agreement (the “Coinbase Cloud MSA”) with Coinbase Cloud Pte. Ltd. (“Coinbase Cloud”). Under the Coinbase Cloud MSA, Coinbase Cloud will provide the infrastructure and related technical services necessary to enable the Trust to participate in staking activities with respect to certain eligible crypto assets held by the Trust (the “Staking Activities”). The Trust will announce when it starts Staking Activities at a later date.
The Sponsor has evaluated subsequent events through the date the financial statement were issued and has determined that there are no other material events that would require disclosure in the financial statements.
F-
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.
This information should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and notes included in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report (the “Report”). The discussion and analysis which follows may contain trend analysis and other forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 which reflect our current views with respect to future events and financial results. Words such as “anticipate,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “seek,” “outlook” and “estimate,” as well as similar words and phrases, signify forward-looking statements. Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF’s (the “Trust’s”) forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future results and conditions, and important factors, risks and uncertainties may cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed in our forward-looking statements.
You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Except as expressly required by the Federal securities laws, Hashdex Asset Management Ltd. (the “Sponsor”) undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements or the risks, uncertainties or other factors described in this Report, as a result of new information, future events or changed circumstances or for any other reason after the date of this Report.
Overview/Introduction
The Trust is a Delaware statutory trust organized on July 12, 2024. The Trust is not a commodity pool under the Commodity Exchange Act of 1936, as amended, and the Sponsor is not subject to regulation by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission as a commodity pool operator or a commodity trading advisor with respect to the Trust. The Trust issues shares of beneficial interest, called “Shares,” representing fractional undivided beneficial interests in the Trust. The Shares are listed and traded on The Nasdaq Stock Market, LLC (the “Exchange”). The Trust’s investment objective is to ensure that daily changes in the net asset value (“NAV”) of the Shares correspond to the daily changes of the Nasdaq Crypto US Settlement Price Index (NCIUSS) (the “Index”), less expenses and liabilities of the Trust, by investing in the index crypto asset constituents of the Index (“Index Constituents”). Under its current investment strategy, the Trust invests in crypto assets to track NCIUSS. Under limited circumstances, the Trust will hold cash to bear its expenses. The Sponsor will employ a passive investment strategy that is intended to track the changes in the Index regardless of whether the Index goes up or down, meaning that the Sponsor will not try to “beat” the Index. It also means that the Trust will not utilize leverage.
The Trust operates pursuant to the Trust’s Third Amended and Restated Trust Agreement (the “Trust Agreement”), dated September 18, 2025. On February 13, 2025, the initial Form S-1 for the Trust was declared effective by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), and registered an indeterminate number of Shares. Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC and BitGo Trust Company, Inc (the “Crypto Custodians”) are the custodian for the Trust’s crypto holdings; and U.S. Bank National Association is the custodian for the Trust’s cash and cash equivalents holdings (the “Cash Custodian” and together with the Crypto Custodians, the “Custodians”).
The sponsor of the Trust is Hashdex Asset Management Ltd. (the “Sponsor”). CSC Delaware Trust Company is the trustee of the Trust (the “Trustee”). The Trust intends to be treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The Sponsor’s responsibilities are discussed below in the section entitled “The Sponsor’s Operations.”
While investors will purchase and sell Shares through their broker-dealer, the Trust continuously offers creation baskets consisting of 10,000 Shares at their net asset value (“NAV”) to certain financial institutions that have entered into an agreement with the Sponsor.
Recent Developments
Crypto Trading Counterparties
On July 16, 2025, the Trust entered into a Master Purchase Agreement (the “Cumberland Agreement”) with Cumberland DRW LLC (“Cumberland”), pursuant to which Cumberland provides over-the-counter trading services, including the purchase and sale of crypto assets, subject to its customary terms and conditions.
On July 24, 2025, the Trust entered into a Master Services Agreement (the “Flowdesk Agreement”) with Flowdesk SAS (“Flowdesk”), pursuant to which Flowdesk provides over-the-counter trading services, including the purchase and sale of crypto assets, subject to its customary terms and conditions.
On August 27, 2025, the Trust entered into a Letter of Adherence to the Terms of Business of Enigma Securities Limited (the “Enigma Agreement”), pursuant to which Enigma Securities Limited (“Enigma”) provides over-the-counter trading services, including the purchase and sale of crypto assets, subject to its customary terms and conditions.
Amendment to the Trust Agreement
On September 18, 2025, the Sponsor and CSC Delaware Trust Company, the Trustee of the Trust, executed the Third Amended and Restated Trust Agreement (the “Trust Agreement”). The amended Trust Agreement introduced certain revisions to the Second Amended and Restated Trust Agreement to reflect the requirements necessary for the Trust to rely on the generic listing standards adopted by The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC.
Reliance on Generic Listing Standards and Index Constituents
On September 25, 2025, the Sponsor issued a press release announcing the Trust’s transition to rely on the generic listing standards adopted by The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (the “Exchange”) and approved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”).
In reliance on the Generic Listing Standards, the Trust is permitted to hold additional crypto assets that are constituents of the Nasdaq Crypto US Settlement Price™ Index (“NCIUSS” or the “Index”), rather than being limited to only two crypto assets. Accordingly, since that date, the Trust tracks Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), Stellar (XLM), and XRP (XRP), subject to quarterly rebalancing and any additions or removals of Index Constituents in accordance with the Index methodology and the eligibility criteria under the Generic Listing Standards. In addition, since September 30, 2025, Cardano (ADA) has been added to the Trust’s holdings, subject to quarterly rebalancing and any additions or removals of Index Constituents in accordance with the Index Methodology and the eligibility criteria under the Generic Listing Standards.
Trust Overview
The Trust issues Shares on the Exchange. The Trust’s investment objective is for changes in the Shares’ NAV to reflect the daily changes of the price of the Nasdaq Crypto US Settlement Price Index (NCIUSS) (the “Index”), less expenses and liabilities of the Trust. Under its current investment strategy, the Trust invests in Index Constituents. Under limited circumstances, the Trust will hold cash to bear its expenses. It also means that the Trust will not utilize leverage. In order to track the Index as closely as possible, the Trust will aim to invest the Index Constituents in the same proportions as the Index. The Sponsor will employ a passive investment strategy that is intended to track the changes in the Index regardless of whether the Index goes up or goes down. Because the Trust’s investment objective is to track the price of the Index, the price of the Shares may vary from changes in the spot price of the Index Constituents. The Trust, the Sponsor, the Administrator and the service providers, including the Custodians, will not loan or pledge the Trust’s assets, nor will the Trust’s assets serve as collateral for any loan or similar arrangement. The Administrator calculates an approximate net asset value every 15 seconds throughout each day that the Trust’s Shares are traded on the Exchange. The Trust will not utilize leverage, derivatives, or any similar arrangements in seeking to meet its investment objective.
The Index Methodology
The Trust will use the Index as a reference to track and measure its performance compared to the price performance of the markets for the Index Constituents and for valuation purposes when calculating the Trust’s NAV.
The Index is designed to measure the performance of a portion of the overall crypto asset market. The Index does not track the overall performance of all crypto assets generally, nor the performance of any specific crypto assets. The Index is owned and administered by Nasdaq, Inc. (“Index Provider”) and is calculated by CF Benchmarks Limited (“Calculation Agent”), which is experienced in calculating and administering crypto assets indices. The Calculation Agent publishes daily the Index Constituents, the Index Constituents’ weightings, the intraday value of the Index (under the ticker NCIUS), and the daily settlement value of the Index (under the ticker NCIUSS), which is effectively the Index’s closing value.
The Index is derived from a rules-based methodology (“Index Rules”), which is overseen by the Nasdaq Index Management Committee (“NIMC”). The NIMC governs the Index and is responsible for its implementation, administration, and general oversight, including assessing crypto assets for eligibility, adjustments to account for regulatory changes and periodic methodology reviews. The NIMC shall approve any material changes to the methodology and review the Index methodology at least on an annual basis. The Index Rules may only be changed by the Index Provider with the approval of the NIMC. Neither the Trust nor the Sponsor have control over the Index Rules or the Index administration. Changes to Index Rules may result in adverse effects to the Trust and/or in the ability of the Sponsor to implement the Trust’s investment strategy.
Crypto assets are eligible for inclusion in the Index if they satisfy the criteria set forth under the Nasdaq Crypto US Index methodology, which includes being listed on a U.S.-regulated crypto asset trading platform at the time of the inclusion or serving as the underlying asset for a derivative instrument listed on a U.S.-regulated derivatives platform. The Index adjusts its constituents and weightings on a quarterly basis to reflect changes in the crypto asset markets. Notwithstanding inclusion in the eligible list, the NIMC reserves the right to further exclude any additional assets based on one or more factors, including but not limited to, its review of general reputational, fraud, manipulation, or security concerns connected to the asset. Assets that, in the sole discretion of the NIMC, do not offer utility, do not facilitate novel use cases, or that do not exhibit technical, structural or crypto-economic innovation (e.g., assets inspired by memes or internet jokes) may also be excluded. The Nasdaq Crypto US Index methodology has been written and designed to be forward-looking to account for any potential future regulatory changes, including potential changes where crypto asset trading platforms would be regulated by U.S. regulators such as the SEC and the CFTC.
The Index will be reconstituted and rebalanced quarterly, on the first Business Day in March, June, September, and December (“Reconstitution Date”).
The Trust’s Investment Strategies
The Trust will gain exposure to crypto assets by investing in the Index Constituents. It will maintain cash balances only as necessary to cover currently due Trust-payable expenses. Absent any Share redemption orders or due expenses, the Trust’s portfolio will consist solely of the Index Constituents, except that the Sponsor may, at its sole discretion, exclude a specific Index Constituent under certain circumstances further described below. The Trust will not invest in any crypto assets outside the Index Constituents, nor will it invest in tokenized assets or stablecoins. If any crypto asset other than the Index Constituents becomes eligible for inclusion in the Index, the Sponsor will endeavor to maintain full replication investment strategy and replicate the Index’s holdings. The ratio of investment in the Index Constituents, representing the proportion of quantities of crypto assets per Share, changes quarterly as described below in The Trust’s Benchmark.
As of September 30, 2025, the crypto asset constituents of the Index Constituents and their weightings were as follows:
| Constituents | Weight | |||
| Bitcoin (BTC) | 73.49 | % | ||
| Ether (ETH) | 14.85 | % | ||
| XRP (XRP) | 6.21 | % | ||
| Solana (SOL) | 4.05 | % | ||
| Cardano (ADA)* | 1.08 | % | ||
| Stellar (XLM) | 0.31 | % | ||
| * | Crypto position was established on 9/30/25. The crypto custodian reflects trade quantities on settlement date, which occurred after period end. |
The Sponsor will employ a passive investment strategy intended to track the Index, regardless of its direction, meaning that the Sponsor will not attempt to outperform the Index. This strategy aims to allow investors to buy and sell Shares to hedge against losses in Index-related transactions or to gain price exposure to the Index. Consistent with its investment objective, the Trust will not use its investments to enhance leverage or seek performance multiples or inverse multiples of the Index.
The weighting of each Index Constituent in the Trust’s portfolio is generally expected to match the weighting of the Index Constituents in the Index, except when the Sponsor determines to exclude or limit the weight of one or more crypto assets from the Trust’s portfolio in the rules-based circumstances set forth below. In such cases, the weightings of the crypto assets held by the Trust are generally expected to be calculated proportionally to the respective Index Constituents for the remaining Index Constituents.
The Sponsor may, at its discretion, exclude or limit the weighting of Index Constituents in the Trust’s portfolio under the following circumstances:
| ● | The inclusion or projected weighting of a crypto asset could, in the Sponsor’s sole judgment, result in the Trust being required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act or require the Sponsor to register as an investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940; |
| ● | None or few of the Authorized Participants or service providers have the ability to trade or otherwise support the asset in a way that impacts the Trust operations; |
| ● | The Sponsor determines, based on available guidance, that the use or trading of the crypto asset raises, or is likely to raise, significant governmental, policy, or regulatory concerns or is subject to, or likely to become subject to, a specialized regulatory regime, such as U.S. federal securities or commodities laws or similar laws in other significant jurisdictions; |
| ● | The crypto asset’s underlying code contains, or may contain, material flaws or vulnerabilities; or |
| ● | Holding the crypto asset would cause the Trust’s holdings to be inconsistent with applicable listing rules of the Exchange. |
While these constraints are designed to ensure compliance with applicable laws and rules, they may result in deviations between the performance of the Trust and the performance of the Index. As crypto assets become eligible, or if any Index Constituents later become ineligible, for inclusion based on the applicable listing rules of the Exchange, the Sponsor expects to adjust the inclusion and weighting of Index Constituents in the Trust’s portfolio accordingly. The Sponsor will disclose the current Index Constituents and their weighting on the Trust’s website on an ongoing basis.
Calculating NAV
The Trust’s NAV per Share will be calculated by taking the current market value of its total assets, subtracting any liabilities, and dividing that total by the number of Shares. The assets of the Trust will consist of crypto assets, cash and cash equivalents. The Sponsor has the exclusive authority to determine the Trust’s NAV, which it has delegated to the Administrator.
The Administrator of the Trust will calculate the NAV once each Business Day, as of the earlier of the close of the Nasdaq or 4:00 p.m. New York time. For purposes of making these calculations, a “Business Day” means any day other than a day when Nasdaq is closed for regular trading.
In determining the Trust’s holdings, the Administrator will value the Index Constituents held by the Trust based on the Index Constituent Settlement Price, unless the prices are not available or the Administrator, in its sole discretion, determines that the Index Constituent Settlement Price is unreliable (“Fair Value Event”).
In the instance of a Fair Value Event, the Trust’s holdings may be fair valued on a temporary basis in accordance with the fair value policies approved by the Administrator. In the instance of a Fair Value Event and pursuant to the Administrator’s fair valuation policies and procedures, VWAP or Volume Weighted Median Prices (VWMP) from another index administrator (“Secondary Index”) will be utilized.
If a Secondary Index is also not available or the Administrator in its sole discretion determines the Secondary Index is unreliable, the price set by the Trust’s principal market as of 4:00 p.m. ET, on the valuation date will be utilized. In the event the principal market price is not available or the Administrator in its sole discretion determines the principal market valuation is unreliable, the Administrator will use its best judgment to determine a good faith estimate of fair value. The Administrator identifies and determines the Trust’s principal market (or in the absence of a principal market, the most advantageous market) for crypto assets consistent with the application of fair value measurement framework in FASB (Financial Accounting Standards Board) Accounting standards codification (ASC) 820-10. The principal market is the market where the reporting entity would normally enter into a transaction to sell the asset or transfer the liability. The principal market must be available to and be accessible by the reporting entity. The reporting entity is the Trust.
If the Index Constituent Settlement Price is not used to determine the Trust’s crypto asset holdings, Shareholders will be notified through a prospectus supplement, a current report on Form 8-K, the Trust’s periodic Exchange Act reports and/or on the Trust’s website and, if this index change is on a permanent basis, a filing with the Commission under Rule 19b-4 of the Act will be required.
A Fair Value Event value determination will be based upon all available factors that the Sponsor or the Administrator deems relevant at the time of the determination and may be based on analytical values determined by the Sponsor or Administrator using third party valuation models. Fair value policies approved by the Administrator will seek to determine the fair value price that the Trust might reasonably expect to receive from the current sale of that asset or liability in an arm’s-length transaction on the date on which the asset or liability is being valued consistent with “Relevant Transactions”. A “Relevant Transaction” is any crypto asset versus U.S. dollar spot trade that occurs during the observation window between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. ET on a Core Crypto Platform in the BTC/USD pair that is reported and disseminated by a Core Crypto Platform through its publicly available application programming interface and observed by the Index Provider.
Indicative Trust Value
In order to provide updated information relating to the Trust for use by Shareholders and market professionals, the Sponsor will engage an independent calculator to calculate an updated Indicative Trust Value (“ITV”). The ITV will be calculated by using the prior day’s closing NAV per Share of the Trust as a base and will be updated throughout the regular market session of 9:30 a.m. E.T. to 4:00 p.m. E.T. (the “Regular Market Session”) to reflect changes in the value of the Trust’s holdings during the trading day. For purposes of calculating the ITV, the Trust’s crypto asset holdings will be priced using a real time version of the Index.
The ITV will be disseminated on a per Share basis every 15 seconds during the Regular Market Session and be widely disseminated by one or more major market data vendors during the Regular Market Session. Several major market data vendors display and/or make widely available ITVs taken from the Consolidated Tape Association (CTA) or other data feeds.
Results of Operations
As the Trust commenced operations in 2025, the following discussion does not include a comparison to the corresponding periods in the prior fiscal year.
For the three months ended September 30, 2025
The Trust’s net assets increased from $125,608,529 as of June 30, 2025, to $153,538,950 as of September 30, 2025. This total increase of $27,930,421 was primarily driven by a net increase from operations of $ 16,459,378. During the quarter, a total of 470,000 shares (47 baskets) were created and 90,000 shares (9 baskets) were redeemed, resulting in a total net increase of 380,000 shares (38 baskets).
For the period from January 21, 2025 through September 30, 2025
Since its inception on January 21, 2025, the Trust’s net assets grew to $153,538,950 as of September 30, 2025. This growth resulted from a net increase from operations of $40,384,728 a net increase from capital share transactions of $113,154,222. Since inception, a total of 5,120,000 shares have been created and 150,000 shares have been redeemed, resulting in a net increase of 4,970,000 shares as of September 30, 2025.
For the period from July 1,2025 through September 30, 2025
The 12.86% increase in the NAV for purposes of the Trust’s periodic financial statements (“Financial Statement NAV”), from $27.37 at July 1, 2025 to $30.89 as of September 30, 2025, reflects the appreciation in the prices of the crypto assets in the NCIUS. The NAV increase is also partially offset by the Sponsor’s fee, which totaled $90,155 net of waiver, for the period.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
The Trust is not aware of any trends, demands, commitments, events, or uncertainties that are reasonably likely to result in material changes to its liquidity needs. The Trust’s only ordinary recurring expense is the management fee paid to the Sponsor, monthly in arrears, in an amount equal to 0.50% per annum of the daily NAV of the Trust (the “Management Fee”). The Sponsor may, at its sole discretion and from time to time, waive all or a portion of the Management Fee for stated periods of time. The Sponsor is under no obligation to waive any portion of its fees, and any such waiver shall create no obligation to waive any such fees during any period not covered by the waiver. The Sponsor has agreed to temporarily reduce its Management Fee to 0.25% per annum through December 31, 2025. After December 31, 2025, the standard 0.50% annual Management Fee will apply. The Management Fee is paid in consideration of the Sponsor’s services related to the management of the Trust’s business and affairs. Creation with cash may cause the Trust to incur certain costs including brokerage commissions and redemptions of creation units with cash may result in the recognition of gains or losses that the Trust might not have incurred if it had made redemptions in-kind. For the quarter ended September 30, 2025, the Sponsor’s fee, net of the temporary fee waiver, was $90,155. The Trust pays all of its respective brokerage commissions, including applicable exchange fees and give-up fees, and other transaction related fees and expenses charged in connection with trading activities. The Trust also pays all fees and commissions related to the sale and purchase of spot crypto assets, including any transaction fees for on-chain transfers of the Index Constituent. The Sponsor pays all other routine operational, administrative and other ordinary expenses of the Trust, including but not limited to, fees and expenses of the Administrator, Trustee, Custodians, Marketing Agent, Transfer Agent, licensors, accounting and audit fees and expenses, tax preparation expenses, ongoing SEC registration fees, report preparation and mailing expenses, and up to $250,000 per annum in ordinary legal fees and expenses. The Sponsor may determine in its sole discretion to assume legal fees and expenses of the Trust in excess of the $250,000 per annum. The Trust pays all of its non-recurring and unusual fees and expenses, if any, as determined by the Sponsor. Non-recurring and unusual fees and expenses are unexpected or unusual in nature, such as legal claims and liabilities and litigation costs or indemnification or other unanticipated expenses. Extraordinary fees and expenses also include material expenses which are not currently anticipated obligations of the Trust. Routine operational, administrative and other ordinary expenses are not deemed extraordinary expenses.
General expenses of the Trust will be allocated to the Trust as determined by the Sponsor in its discretion. The Trust may be required to indemnify the Sponsor, and the Trust and/or the Sponsor may be required to indemnify the Trust’s service providers under certain circumstances. Unless such expenses are specifically attributable to the Trust or arise out of the Trust’s operations, any such expenses will be allocated by the Sponsor using a pro rata methodology that allocates certain Trust expenses to the Trust. Expenses paid by Sponsor are not subject to any caps or limits.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
The Trust does not have any off-balance sheet arrangements.
Critical Accounting Estimates
The financial statements and accompanying notes are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. The preparation of these financial statements relies on estimates and assumptions that impact the Trust’s financial position and results of operations. These estimates and assumptions affect the Trust’s application of accounting policies. Below is a summary of accounting policies on cash and investment valuation. There were no material estimates involving a significant level of estimation uncertainty that had or are reasonably likely to have had a material impact on the Trust’s financial condition used in the preparation of the financial statements. In addition, please refer to Note 2 to the Financial Statements included in this report for further discussion of the Trust’s accounting policies.
Cash
Cash includes non-interest bearing, non-restricted cash maintained with one financial institution that does not exceed U.S. federally insured limits.
Investment Valuation
The Trust’s policy is to value investments held at fair value. The Trust follows the provisions of ASC 820, Fair Value Measurements (“ASC 820”). ASC 820 provides guidance for determining fair value and requires increased disclosure regarding the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value. ASC 820 determines fair value to be the price that would be received for the subject crypto asset in a current sale, which assumes an exit price resulting from an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date. ASC 820-10 requires the assumption that the subject crypto asset is sold in its principal market to market participants (or in the absence of a principal market, the most advantageous market).
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
We are a smaller reporting company as defined by Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and are not required to provide the information under this item.
Item 4. Controls and Procedures
Disclosure Controls and Procedures
The Trust maintains disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the Trust’s periodic reports filed or submitted under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time period specified in the SEC’s rules and forms for the Trust and the Fund thereof.
The management of the Sponsor (“Management”) has evaluated the effectiveness of the design and operation of the Trust and Trust’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) or 15d-15(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) as of the end of the period covered by this report, and, based upon that evaluation, concluded that the Trust’s disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of the end of such period, to ensure that information the Trust is required to disclose in the reports that it files or submits with the SEC under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Trust in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to the Management, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. The scope of the evaluation of the effectiveness of the design and operation of its disclosure controls and procedures covers the Trust.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
During the quarter ended September 30, 2025, there have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting, as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15(d)-15(f) promulgated under the Exchange Act, that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
PART II. OTHER INFORMATION
Item 1. Legal Proceedings
Neither the Trust nor the Sponsor are currently subject to any material legal proceedings, nor, to our knowledge, are any material legal proceedings threatened against Trust or Sponsor.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
You should carefully consider the factors discussed in “Risk Factors” in our Registration Statement on Form S-1 (333-280990) declared effective on February 13, 2025, as supplemented to date, which could materially affect our business, financial condition or future results. There have been no material changes in our risk factors from those disclosed therein.
The risks described in our Amended S-1 filing are not the only risks facing the Trust. You should also consider any risks and uncertainties described under the caption “Risk Factors” in any applicable prospectus, prospectus supplement, registration statement or other document that we file with the SEC before or after this date. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem to be immaterial also may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and/or operating results.
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds
| (a) | None. |
| (b) | Not applicable. |
| (c) | The Trust does not purchase Shares directly from its Shareholders. In connection with its redemption of baskets held by Authorized Participants, the Trust redeemed 9 baskets (comprising 90,000 Shares) during the quarter ended September 30, 2025. The following table summarizes the redemptions of Shares by Authorized Participants during the period: |
| Period | Total Shares Redeemed |
Average Price Per Share Redeemed |
Maximum number of shares that may yet be purchased |
|||||||
| July 1, 2025 – July 31, 2025 | 90,000 | $ | 30.93 | N/A | ||||||
| August 1, 2025 – August 31, 2025 | 0 | $ | 0 | N/A | ||||||
| September 1, 2025 – September 30, 2025 | 0 | $ | 0 | N/A | ||||||
Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities
None.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not Applicable.
Item 5. Other Information
No officers or directors of the Sponsor have adopted, modified, or terminated trading plans under either a Rule 10b5-1 or non-Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement (as such terms are defined in Item 408 of Regulation S-K of the Securities Act) for the three-month period ended September 30, 2025.
Item 6. Exhibits
The following exhibits are filed as part of this report as required under Item 601 of Regulation S-K:
| * | Filed herewith. |
| ** | Furnished herewith. |
| (1) | Incorporated by reference to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-280990) filed by the Registrant on July 24, 2024. |
| (2) | Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K (File No. 001-42511) filed by the Registrant on September 24, 2025. |
| (3) | Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K (File No. 001-42511) filed by the Registrant on October 15, 2025. |
SIGNATURES
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, thereunto duly authorized.
| Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF (Registrant) | ||
| By: | Hashdex Asset Management, Ltd. | |
| its Sponsor | ||
| By: | /s/ Bruno Ramos de Sousa | |
| Name: | Bruno Ramos de Sousa | |
| Title: | Director of the Sponsor (Principal Executive Officer) | |
| By: | /s/ Samir Elias Hachem Kerbage | |
| Name: | Samir Elias Hachem Kerbage | |
| Title: | Director of the Sponsor (Principal Finance Officer and Principal Accounting Officer) | |
| Date: November 10, 2025 | ||
Exhibit 10.2
CUSTODIAL SERVICES AGREEMENT
Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF
&
Fidelity Digital Asset Services, LLC THIS CUSTODIAL SERVICES AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) is made on June 27, 2025 (the “Effective Date”), by and between Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF, (the “Client”), with Hashdex Asset Management Ltd. as Sponsor acting on behalf of Client, and Fidelity Digital Asset Services, LLC (the “Custodian”, and collectively with the Client, the “Parties,” and each individually, a “Party”).
| 1. | DEFINITIONS AND INTERPRETATION |
| A. | Definitions. For purposes of this Agreement and any exhibit or schedule hereto, the following terms shall have the meanings ascribed to them below: |
“Affiliated Agent” has the meaning set forth in Section 12.C.iii.
“Assets” means Cash and Eligible Assets that have been Delivered to the Custodian to be credited to one or more Custody Accounts established and maintained by the Custodian on behalf of the Client, in each case until such Assets are withdrawn or cease to be Assets pursuant to this Agreement. Assets shall also mean any Forked Digital Asset that the Custodian, in its sole discretion, chooses to support pursuant to Section 8 hereof.
“Authenticated Instruction” means an Instruction that has been confirmed as originating from an Authorized Person through a video conference call, the use of a mobile phone application or hardware security module or other method of authentication in accordance with procedures specified by the Custodian from time to time as required to be used in connection with the services hereunder.
“Authorized Person” has the meaning set forth in Section 5.A.
“Blockchain Address” means a public address on a blockchain in which a record of Eligible Assets can be held (including, without limitation, a bitcoin address for the asset commonly known as bitcoin).
“Business Day” means any day on which the Federal Reserve Bank of New York is open for business.
“Cash” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.A.ii.
“Cash Credit Request” has the meaning set forth in Section 3.D.
“Cash Custody Account” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.A.ii.
“Cash Debit Request” has the meaning set forth in Section 3.E.
“Client Digital Assets” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.B.i.
“Confidential Information” has the meaning set forth in Section 18.
“Custody Account” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.A.ii.
“Cut-Off Time” has the meaning set forth in Section 5.G.
“Delivery” (or “Deliver” or “Delivered”) means the transfer of Eligible Assets to one or more Blockchain Addresses controlled by the receiving Party and provided by the receiving Party to the sending Party for such transfer. Eligible Assets shall be considered Delivered to the Custodian after the prevailing number of network confirmations as required by the Custodian from time to time have occurred on the blockchain used for the transaction transferring the Eligible Assets.
“Digital Asset” means a digital asset (also called a “cryptocurrency,” “virtual currency,” “digital currency,” or “digital commodity”), such as bitcoin, which is based on the cryptographic protocol of a computer network that may be (i) centralized or decentralized, (ii) closed or open-source, and (iii) used as a medium of exchange and/or store of value.
“Digital Asset Credit Request” has the meaning set forth in Section 3.A.
“Digital Asset Debit Request” has the meaning set forth in Section 3.B.
“Digital Asset Custody Account” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.A.i.
“Eligible Assets” mean Digital Assets that are supported by the Custodian in its sole discretion on any given date in accordance with Section 2.D.
“Fee Schedule” means the schedule referred to in Section 12.D.i, as annexed hereto.
“Force Majeure Event” means any event due directly or indirectly to any cause or condition beyond the reasonable control of the Custodian, such as, but not limited to: changes in the functioning or features of Eligible Assets or the software protocols that govern their operation; sabotage or fraudulent manipulation of the protocols or network that govern Eligible Assets; changes in applicable Law; cybersecurity attacks, hacks or other intrusions; unavailability or malfunction of wire, communications or other technological systems; suspension or disruption of trading markets; requisitions; involuntary transfers; failure of utility services; fire; flooding; adverse weather or events of nature; explosions; acts of God, civil commotion, strikes or industrial action of any kind; riots, insurrection, terrorist acts; war (whether declared or undeclared); or acts of government or government agencies (U.S. or foreign).
“Fork” means a change in the consensus rules of a network for a Digital Asset, as further described in Schedule 3.
“Forked Digital Asset” means the resulting branches of a Digital Asset that has undergone a Fork.
“Governmental Authority” means any governmental body at the supranational, national, state, county, province, city, municipal, local or any other level, any agency, authority, instrumentality, regulatory body, quasi-regulatory authority, administrative tribunal, central bank, public office, court, arbitration or mediation panel, or other entity or subdivision exercising executive, legislative, judicial, taxing, regulatory or administrative powers or functions of government, securities exchange or self-regulatory organization, in each case in any jurisdiction.
“Hague Securities Convention” means the Convention on the Law Applicable to Certain Rights in Respect of Securities Held with an Intermediary, July 5, 2006, 17 U.S.T. 401, 46 I.L.M. 649 (entered into force April 1, 2017).
“Ineligibility Determination” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.D.
“Instructions” mean communications, including entitlement orders, received by the Custodian through an on-line communication system, by e-mail, or other method or system, as specified by the Custodian from time to time as available for use in connection with the services hereunder.
“Law” means each of the following, including any updates thereto throughout the Term, to the extent applicable: any and all supranational, national, state, provincial or local laws, treaties, rules, regulations, regulatory guidance, directives, policies, orders or determinations of (or agreements with), and mandatory written direction from (or agreements with), any Governmental Authority or other regulatory authority, including export laws, sanctions regulations, and all federal and state statutes or regulations relating to banking, stored value, money transmission, unclaimed property, payment processing, telecommunications, unfair or deceptive trade practices or acts, anti-corruption, trade compliance, anti-money laundering, terrorist financing, “know your customer,” securities, commodities, derivatives, other financial products or services, privacy or data security.
“Person” means any natural person, corporation, general partnership, limited partnership, limited liability company, joint venture, trust, proprietorship, governmental body or other entity, association or organization of any nature. Any reference herein to any Person shall be construed to include such Person’s successors and assigns.
“Proper Instructions” has the meaning set forth in Section 5.B.
“Sponsor” means the Sponsor of the Client, the Hashdex Asset Management Ltd.
“System Failure” means a failure of any computer hardware or software used by the Custodian or a service provider to the Custodian, or any telecommunications lines or devices used by the Custodian or a service provider to the Custodian.
“Taxes” means all federal, state, local, foreign, and other taxes, government fees or the like, including, without limitation, income taxes, estimated taxes, alternative minimum taxes, franchise taxes, capital stock taxes, sales taxes, use taxes, ad valorem, or value-added taxes, employment and payroll-related taxes, withholding taxes, and transfer taxes, whether or not measured in whole or in part by net income, and all deficiencies, or other additions to tax, interest thereon, and fines and penalties imposed in connection therewith.
“Trade Order” has the meaning set forth in Section 4.A.
“UCC” means the Uniform Commercial Code as in effect in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts from time to time.
| B. | Interpretation. |
| i. | The words “hereof,” “herein” and “hereunder” and words of like import used in this Agreement will refer to this Agreement as a whole and not to any particular provision of this Agreement. References to Sections, Exhibits, Appendices and Schedules are to Sections, Exhibits, Appendices and Schedules of this Agreement unless otherwise specified. All Exhibits, Appendices and Schedules annexed hereto or referred to herein are hereby incorporated in and made a part of this Agreement as if set forth in full herein. Any capitalized terms used in any Exhibit, Appendix or Schedule but not otherwise defined therein, will have the meaning as defined in this Agreement. Any singular term in this Agreement will be deemed to include the plural, and any plural term the singular. Whenever the words “such as,” “include,” “includes” or “including” are used in this Agreement, they will be deemed to be followed by the words “without limitation,” whether or not they are in fact. The word “will” shall be construed to have the same meaning and effect as the word “shall.” |
| ii. | The terms “entitlement holder”, “entitlement order”, “financial asset”, “proceeds”, “security entitlement”, and “securities intermediary” have the meanings set forth in Articles 8 and 9 of the UCC and the term “security” shall also include property included in the term “securities” in the Hague Securities Convention. |
| 2. | ESTABLISHMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF CUSTODY ACCOUNTS AND APPOINTMENT OF CUSTODIAN |
| A. | Custody Accounts. The Client authorizes, approves and directs the Custodian to establish and maintain on its books, in the name of the Client as the entitlement holder, pursuant to the terms of this Agreement: |
| i. | one or more custody accounts for the receipt, safekeeping and maintenance of Eligible Assets (each a “Digital Asset Custody Account”); and |
| ii. | one or more cash accounts (each a “Cash Custody Account”, and, together with the Digital Asset Custody Accounts, the “Custody Account”), each corresponding to a Digital Asset Custody Account, to hold cash and monies received for deposit for the account of the Client (“Cash”) in accordance with the terms of this Agreement. Cash held for the Client in Cash Custody Accounts may be held by the Custodian in an omnibus, non-interest bearing cash account, along with the Cash of other customers of the Custodian, at an unaffiliated depository in the name of the Custodian, specifically designated for the purpose of holding funds of the Custodian’s clients. The Custodian will not commingle its corporate cash with Client Cash in any such omnibus account. The Custodian may hold Cash in a Cash Custody Account subject to and in accordance with applicable local law, rules or practices. The establishment of the Custody Account in the name of the Client shall be subject to successful completion of the Custodian’s screening procedures. |
| B. | Financial Asset Election. The parties agree that all property credited to the Custody Accounts, including all Cash, will be treated as “financial assets” under Article 8 of the UCC, the Custodian will be acting as “securities intermediary” in maintaining the Custody Accounts within the meaning of Article 8 of the UCC and an “intermediary” within the meaning of the Hague Securities Convention, and the Custody Accounts will constitute “securities accounts” within the meaning of Article 8 of the UCC and the Hague Securities Convention with respect to all property credited thereto. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the “securities intermediary’s jurisdiction” for purposes of the UCC, and the law in force in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is applicable to all issues specified in Article 2(1) of the Hague Securities Convention. |
| C. | Digital Asset Segregation. |
| i. | Digital Assets in the Digital Asset Custody Account will be held through an omnibus wallet structure, along with the Digital Assets of other customers of the Custodian (an “Omnibus Wallet”). The Client agrees that the Digital Assets that are transferred by the Client to the Custodian or acquired by the Client through Trade Orders (“Client Digital Assets”) will be treated as fungible with those Digital Assets of other clients of the Custodian that are based on the same cryptographic protocol or consensus rules of a computer network (subject to Schedule 3) that are also held in the Omnibus Wallet by the Custodian on behalf of such other clients. The Client acknowledges that the redelivery rights of the Client in respect of the Client Digital Assets are not necessarily for the same Digital Assets as the Client Digital Assets (or addresses or accounts that are associated with the Client Digital Asset), but rather will be in respect of an equal amount of Digital Assets that are based on the same cryptographic protocol or consensus rules of a computer network (subject to Schedule 3) as the Client Digital Asset. The Custodian will manage all associated private keys on behalf of the Client, subject to the terms of this Agreement. |
| ii. | A portion of the Digital Assets held for clients in the Omnibus Wallet will be held within an offline (i.e. ‘cold’) storage system used by the Custodian in connection with the storage or maintenance of the Digital Assets. As of the Effective Date, the cold storage locations are globally dispersed. |
| D. | Acceptance and Holding of Assets. The Custodian will determine in its sole discretion whether to accept Assets of any kind for custody in the Custody Account. If the Custodian determines in its sole discretion that, due to legal, regulatory, operational, security or reputational risk, an Asset currently held in custody is no longer an Eligible Asset (“Ineligibility Determination”), the Custodian shall (i) deliver the Client written notice of such Ineligibility Determination, (ii) provide no other services with respect to any such Asset, except for Digital Asset Debit Requests and the services described in this Section 2, following such Ineligibility Determination and (iii) within 60 Business Days, or if that is not reasonably practicable, as promptly as reasonably practicable, of the delivery of the Ineligibility Determination, Deliver Digital Assets that are of the same type as the Client Digital Assets (as set forth in Section 2.C.i) in the amount of the Digital Assets subject to the Ineligibility Determination. |
| E. | Designation of Assets. The Custodian shall on its books and records segregate all Digital Assets from the proprietary property of the Custodian; provided that the Custodian may maintain in the Omnibus Wallet an amount of proprietary Digital Assets that are used for operational or related purposes. The ownership of all of the Client’s Assets shall be clearly recorded in the Custodian’s books and records as belonging to the Client. Without the consent of the Client, the Custodian will not lend, pledge or hypothecate any Client Digital Assets. The Custodian will not use Client Digital Assets to secure or guarantee an obligation of, or obtain an extension of credit to, the Custodian. |
| F. | Status of Custodian. The Custodian is a limited liability company and shall be agent or principal with respect to any actions taken by the Custodian with respect to the purchase and sale services pursuant to Section 4 of this Agreement, subject to Section 12.C.vii. |
| 3. | TRANSFER OF ASSETS |
| A. | Credits to the Digital Asset Custody Account. Subject to the terms of this Agreement, the Client may transfer Eligible Assets from an external provider or other third parties to the Digital Asset Custody Account. In advance of any such transfer from an external provider or other third party, the Client shall send the Custodian the applicable Proper Instructions in accordance with Section 5.B (a “Digital Asset Credit Request”) and the name of the owner(s) of the Digital Assets. The Custodian is not obligated to credit any Digital Assets to the Digital Asset Custody Account before the Custodian actually receives such Digital Assets by final settlement. |
| i. | The Custodian, upon receiving the Digital Asset Credit Request and verifying that such request complies with Section 5.B, will generate and deliver to the Client a recipient address and complete any Delivery to the Digital Asset Custody Account within the time period specified by the Custodian at the recipient address specified by the Custodian to the Client (or at an address previously specified by the Custodian to the Client and not subsequently identified to the Client as invalid), subject to successful completion of the Custodian’s screening procedures. Delivery to the Digital Asset Custody Account is subject to the payment of the Custodian’s fees as specified in the Fee Schedule. |
| ii. | The Custodian shall monitor associated nodes, as determined to be necessary by the Custodian in its sole discretion, for incoming transactions. The Custodian shall advise the Client of Eligible Assets availability after Eligible Assets have been Delivered to the Digital Asset Custody Account. |
| B. | Debits to the Digital Asset Custody Account. Subject to the terms of this Agreement, the Client may Deliver Eligible Assets from the Digital Asset Custody Account by sending the Custodian the applicable Proper Instructions in accordance with Section 5.B (a “Digital Asset Debit Request”). |
| i. | The Custodian, upon receiving the Digital Asset Debit Request and verifying that such request complies with Section 5.B, will initiate the transfer and broadcast the Digital Asset Debit Requests to the blockchain supporting the relevant Eligible Asset within the time period specified by the Custodian, subject to successful completion of the Custodian’s screening procedures. |
| ii. | The Custodian shall provide the Client with a confirmation of a pending debit transaction. Within the three (3) hours immediately following receipt of such confirmation, the Client may notify the Custodian to query or halt the transaction. |
| iii. | If the Custodian has received a Digital Asset Debit Request that would result in the transfer of Assets from the Custody Account exceeding the credit to the Custody Account for that Asset, the Custodian may, in its sole and absolute discretion, reject such Instructions or decide which deliveries it will make (in whole or in part and in the order it selects). |
| C. | Request for Additional Information. The Client shall promptly provide to the Custodian such additional information as the Custodian may request regarding the source or ownership of the Eligible Assets that are subject to a Digital Asset Credit Request or the recipient of Eligible Assets (and any associated financial institution) that are the subject of a Digital Asset Debit Request. |
| D. | Credits to the Cash Custody Account. Subject to the terms of this Agreement, the Client may transfer Cash into the Client’s Cash Custody Account from a third-party bank account or a third party by sending the Custodian the applicable Proper Instructions in accordance with Section 5.B (a “Cash Credit Request”). |
| i. | The Custodian, upon receiving the Cash Credit Request and verifying that such request complies with Section 5.B, will complete any transfer to the Cash Custody Account within the time period specified by the Custodian. Transfers to the Cash Custody Account are subject to fees specified in the Fee Schedule. |
| E. | Debits to the Cash Custody Account. Subject to the terms of this Agreement, the Client may transfer Cash from the Cash Custody Account to an account at a third-party bank established and maintained in the name of the Client or in the name of a third party in connection with the Client’s purchase of Digital Assets by sending the Custodian the applicable Proper Instructions in accordance with Section 5.B (a “Cash Debit Request”). |
| i. | The Custodian, upon receiving the Cash Debit Request and verifying that such request complies with Section 5.B, will complete any transfer from the Cash Custody Account within the time period specified by the Custodian. Transfers from the Cash Custody Account are subject to fees specified in the Fee Schedule. |
| ii. | Such transfer may only be effected via wire transfer. |
| F. | Purpose of Transfer of Cash. Any transfer of Cash to or from the Client’s Cash Custody Account requested by the Client pursuant to this Agreement shall be solely for the purpose of the settlement of transactions that are the subject of the Client’s Digital Asset Credit Request, Digital Asset Debit Request, or Trade Orders, to transfer Cash to an account at a third-party bank established and maintained in the name of the Client or to pay fees or expenses of the Custodian. |
| G. | Investment in and Transfer of Assets. The Client shall bear the sole risk and expense associated with investing, transferring or otherwise transacting in respect of Digital Assets (except to the extent otherwise specifically provided in this Agreement). |
| H. | Transaction Limits. The Custodian may, for risk management or other reasons, impose limits on the number or size, or both, of transactions processed for the Client under this Section 3. |
| 4. | PURCHASE AND SALE OF DIGITAL ASSETS |
| A. | Role of Custodian. The Custodian may purchase any Digital Assets constituting Eligible Assets from the Client or sell any such Digital Assets to the Client upon receipt of a sale or purchase order in the form of Proper Instructions from the Client (“Trade Orders”). |
| B. | Execution and Order Fulfillment. The Custodian will execute and fulfill the Client’s Trade Orders in accordance with the terms set forth in Schedule 2 attached hereto, as such terms and procedures may be modified by the Custodian from time to time. THE CUSTODIAN’S EXECUTION AND SETTLEMENT OF TRADE ORDERS IS SUBJECT TO AVAILABLE LIQUIDITY AND MARKET CONDITIONS GENERALLY. THE CUSTODIAN RESERVES THE RIGHT TO CANCEL OR REJECT ANY TRADE ORDER, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, FOR ANY REASON. |
| 5. | INSTRUCTIONS |
| A. | Authorized Persons and Sponsor. The Persons identified as “Authorized Persons” on the Firm Authorized User Form(s) completed by the Client or the Sponsor shall, subject to approval by the Custodian, be authorized to act on behalf of the Client in the performance of those acts or duties specified for each such person from time to time in the Firm Authorized User Form(s) (“Authorized Persons”). The Client, or Sponsor acting on behalf of the Client, may, from time to time, add to or remove names from the list of Authorized Persons maintained by the Custodian, or change the authorizations granted to any Authorized Person, by delivery of a new or revised Firm Authorized User Form to the Custodian. If at any time there are no Authorized Persons designated by the Client or the Sponsor, the president/chief executive officer and chief financial officer of the Client shall be deemed Authorized Persons hereunder. |
| B. | Proper Instructions. |
| i. | “Proper Instructions” mean: |
| a) | With respect to Digital Assets Debit Requests or Cash Debit Requests, an Authenticated Instruction delivered by an Authorized Person (or Person that the Custodian believes in good faith to be an Authorized Person) that is confirmed by an Authenticated Instruction from at least one additional Authorized Person (or Person that the Custodian believes in good faith to be an Authorized Person); |
| b) | With respect to Digital Assets Credit Requests or Cash Credit Requests, an Authenticated Instruction delivered by an Authorized Person (or Person that the Custodian believes in good faith to be an Authorized Person); |
| c) | With respect to Trade Orders, an Instruction delivered by an Authorized Person (or Person that the Custodian believes in good faith to be an Authorized Person) through the user interface specified by the Custodian to submit Trade Orders; and |
| d) | With respect to requests not involving the transfer of Assets from or to the Custody Account, an Instruction delivered by an Authorized Person (or Person that the Custodian believes in good faith to be an Authorized Person). |
| ii. | The Custodian may act upon and rely upon any Proper Instruction received from, or believed in good faith by the Custodian to be received from, an Authorized Person, that have been validated in accordance with procedures in place from time to time, unless or until the Custodian has (i) received written notice of any change thereto from the Client and (ii) had a reasonable time to note and implement such change. Validation procedures used by the Custodian are designed only to verify the source of the Instruction and not to detect errors in the content of that Instruction or to prevent duplicate Instructions. The Client agrees that the Custodian shall have no obligation to act in accordance with purported Instructions to the extent that they conflict with applicable Law. The Custodian shall not be liable for any loss resulting from a delay while it obtains clarification of any Proper Instructions. The Client agrees that the Custodian is not responsible for any errors made by or on behalf of the Client, any errors resulting, directly or indirectly, from fraud or the duplication of any Instruction by or on behalf of the Client, or any losses resulting from the malfunctioning of any devices used by the Client or any Authorized Person or loss or compromise of credentials used by the Client or any Authorized Person to deliver Instructions. |
| C. | Rejection of Instruction. The Custodian may reject or decide, in its sole and absolute discretion, not to act on any Instruction to transfer Eligible Assets (i) based on the Custodian’s applicable policies and procedures, including the results of the Custodian’s transaction monitoring and screening procedures, (ii) where it reasonably doubts such Instruction’s contents, authorization, origination or compliance with the Custodian’s policies and procedures, (iii) where it reasonably believes that acting on the Instruction could (a) require it to register or qualify as a regulated entity, (b) violate or facilitate the violation of any Law or (c) subject the Custodian to any financial or other liability for which it has not been provided adequate indemnification, and, in each case, the Custodian covenants to promptly notify the Client of its decision in such instance if permitted to do so by Law, or (iv) in order to give effect to transaction limits imposed in accordance with Section 3.H. In the event the Custodian shall receive conflicting Instructions from the Client or any Authorized Person, the Custodian shall be entitled, at its option, to refrain from taking action until such conflicting Instructions are reconciled to its reasonable satisfaction. |
| D. | Responsibility for Instructions. The Client is responsible for any Instructions actually given to the Custodian or on which the Custodian is entitled to rely hereunder, whether or not properly authorized by the Client. The Custodian shall have no duty or responsibility to inquire into, make recommendations, or determine the suitability of any Instructions or transactions affecting the Custody Account. |
| E. | Acknowledgment of Risk. The Client expressly acknowledges and agrees that the use of electronic communication systems to convey Instructions does not eliminate the risk of error and fraudulent activities or security and privacy issues. |
| F. | English. Instructions are to be given in the English language only. |
| G. | Cut-Off Times. The Custodian may act on Instructions only within applicable cut-off times specified by the Custodian from time to time on Business Days when the Custodian is open for business in the ordinary course (a “Cut-Off Time”). |
| 6. | PERFORMANCE BY THE CUSTODIAN |
| A. | Custodial Duties Requiring Instructions. The Custodian shall carry out any of the following actions only upon receipt of specific Instructions, delivered in accordance with Section 5, authorizing and requesting same: |
| i. | Receive or deliver any Assets, except as otherwise specifically provided for in this Agreement; |
| ii. | Carry out any action affecting Assets and the Custody Account, other than those specified in Section 6.B below; provided, however, that each instance shall be subject to the prior approval and agreement of the Custodian; provided further, that all Instructions regarding Forked Digital Assets are subject to Section 8 of this Agreement; and |
| iii. | Transfer Assets in connection with the services described in Section 3.F. |
| B. | Non-Discretionary Custodial Duties. Absent a contrary Instruction, the Custodian shall be permitted, and is hereby authorized and directed by Client to, and may authorize subcustodians or depositories to, carry out any of the following actions without any further Instructions or approval by or on behalf of Client: |
| i. | In the Client’s name or on its behalf, sign any affidavits, certificates of ownership and other certificates and documents relating to Assets which may be required (a) to obtain any Assets, or (b) by any tax or regulatory authority having jurisdiction over the Assets or the Custody Account; |
| ii. | Notify the Client of notices, circulars, reports and announcements that require discretionary action, in each case, which the Custodian has received in the course of acting in the capacity of custodian of any Assets held on the Client’s behalf; and |
| iii. | Attend to all non-discretionary matters in connection with anything provided in this Section 6.B or any Instruction. |
| C. | Use of Third Parties. The Custodian may perform any of its duties or obligations under this Agreement through depositories, subcustodians, subcontractors or agents (including its affiliates), whenever and on such terms and conditions as it deems necessary or advisable to perform such duties or obligations or liabilities. |
The Custodian shall act in good faith and use reasonable care in the selection and continued appointment of unaffiliated depositories, subcustodians, subcontractors or agents.
| D. | Reporting. The Custodian will provide to Client monthly account statements identifying the Digital Assets in the Custody Account on a monthly basis and setting forth all transactions in the Custody Account during such month. Upon written request from the Sponsor, the Custodian will also provide copies of monthly account statements to the Sponsor. |
| E. | Security of Assets. The Custodian may take such steps that it determines, in its sole discretion, may be necessary or advisable to inspect and protect the security of the Assets, the Custody Account or the Omnibus Wallet or enhance the Custodian’s ability to secure the Assets or the Omnibus Wallet, including cancelling, interrupting, terminating or suspending any or all of the Custodian's services and operations hereunder and the Client's access to the Custodian's services and operations, to any Assets or to the Custody Accounts. The Custodian may from time to time review and amend its policies and procedures or impose such additional policies and procedures as the Custodian, in its sole discretion, considers necessary or advisable to enhance the Custodian's ability to secure the Assets or the Omnibus Wallet. |
| 7. | TAXATION |
| A. | Client’s Tax Obligations. The Client shall, for all tax purposes, be treated as the owner of all Assets held by the Custodian pursuant to this Agreement. It is the Client’s sole responsibility to determine whether and to what extent Taxes and Tax reporting obligations may apply to the Client with respect to its Assets, Custody Accounts, and transactions, and the Client shall timely pay all such Taxes and shall file all returns, reports, and disclosures required by applicable Law. |
| B. | Tax Information. Upon execution of this Agreement, as well as upon request of the Custodian, the Client will promptly provide the Custodian with all forms, certifications, documentation, representations and warranties and any other information as the Custodian may request (“Account Tax Documentation”), including a duly completed and executed W-9 or W-8 (both available at www.irs.gov), as applicable, as to the Client’s and/or the Client’s underlying beneficial owners’ tax status and/or residence. The Client warrants that, when given, such Account Tax Documentation is true, complete and correct. If any such Account Tax Documentation becomes inaccurate, incorrect or obsolete, the Client will notify the Custodian immediately and promptly provide updated Account Tax Documentation. The Client understands that the Custodian may disclose any information with respect to Client Assets, Custody Accounts and transactions required or requested by any applicable taxing authority or other governmental entity. |
| C. | Payments; Indemnity. Custodian is authorized to deduct and/or withhold Taxes, including Taxes arising as a result of the Client’s failure to provide Account Tax Documentation pursuant to Section 7.B above, from Client’s Assets, Custody Account or cash or other property of the Client and remit such amounts to the relevant taxing authority. If any Taxes become payable with respect to any prior payment made to the Client by the Custodian, the Custodian may withhold any cash or other property of the Client held or received with respect to Client’s Assets, Custody Accounts or cash or other property in satisfaction of such prior Taxes. The Client shall remain liable for any Tax deficiency. If Taxes are required to be deducted or withheld from any payments made by the Client to Custodian, the Client will pay such additional amounts as are necessary so that Custodian receives a net amount equal to the amount Custodian would have received absent such withholding or deduction. Without limiting Section 13 hereof, the Client shall indemnify and hold the Custodian harmless from and against any and all liabilities, penalties, interest or additions to tax with respect to, or resulting from, any delay in, or failure by, the Custodian to pay, withhold or report any Taxes imposed on Client’s Assets, cash or other property. |
| 8. | DIGITAL ASSET FORKS |
| A. | Fork of a Digital Asset. The Custodian is not responsible for any Fork of a Digital Asset, including any Eligible Assets, and is not liable for any loss in value of the Assets held by the Custodian on the Client’s behalf as a result of any Fork or otherwise. It is the responsibility of the Client to make itself aware of anticipated or upcoming operational or systemic changes in a Digital Asset and the Client must carefully consider publicly available information as well as information provided by the Custodian, if any, in determining whether to continue to use an account with the Custodian in connection with a Forked Digital Asset. In the event of a Fork of an Eligible Asset, the Custodian will use reasonable efforts to investigate the technical and operational feasibility of providing services with respect to Forked Digital Assets and will act in accordance with its Policy Statement on Forks as set forth in Schedule 3 attached hereto, which may be supplemented or modified by the Custodian from time to time in its sole discretion; provided that the Custodian retains the right, in its sole discretion, to determine whether or not to support (or cease supporting) each Forked Digital Asset. |
| 9. | VALUE AND SUPPLY OF DIGITAL ASSETS; INSURANCE |
| A. | VALUE FLUCTUATION. THE CLIENT UNDERSTANDS THAT THE VALUE OF DIGITAL ASSETS AND ANY UNSUPPORTED FORKED DIGITAL ASSET CAN FLUCTUATE SUBSTANTIALLY, WHICH MAY RESULT IN A SIGNIFICANT OR TOTAL LOSS OF THE VALUE OF THE ASSETS HELD BY THE CUSTODIAN ON THE CLIENT’S BEHALF OR ANY UNSUPPORTED FORKED DIGITAL ASSET. THE CLIENT AGREES THAT THE CUSTODIAN WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS IN VALUE OF THE ASSETS OR UNSUPPORTED FORKED DIGITAL ASSET AT ANY TIME. |
| B. | SUPPLY OF DIGITAL ASSETS. THE SUPPLY OF DIGITAL ASSETS AVAILABLE TO THE CUSTODIAN TO PROVIDE TO THE CLIENT THROUGH TRADE ORDERS AND THE ABILITY OF THE CUSTODIAN TO DELIVER DIGITAL ASSETS DEPENDS ON THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS THAT ARE OUTSIDE OF THE CUSTODIAN’S CONTROL. THE CUSTODIAN DOES NOT OWN OR CONTROL ANY OF THE PROTOCOLS THAT ARE USED IN CONNECTION WITH DIGITAL ASSETS AND THEIR RELATED NETWORKS, INCLUDING THOSE RESULTING FROM A FORK. ACCORDINGLY, THE CUSTODIAN DISCLAIMS ALL LIABILITY RELATING TO SUCH PROTOCOLS AND ANY CHANGE IN THE VALUE OF ANY DIGITAL ASSETS (WHETHER FORKED DIGITAL ASSETS OR NOT), ANY ELIGIBLE ASSETS, OR ANY ASSETS, AND MAKES NO GUARANTEES REGARDING THE SECURITY, FUNCTIONALITY, OR AVAILABILITY OF SUCH PROTOCOLS OR NETWORKS. THE CLIENT ACCEPTS ALL RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH THE USE OF THE SERVICES TO CONDUCT TRANSACTIONS, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, RISKS IN CONNECTION WITH THE FAILURE OF HARDWARE, SOFTWARE AND INTERNET CONNECTIONS. |
| C. | INSURANCE. THE CLIENT ACCEPTS THAT DIGITAL ASSETS ARE NOT SUBJECT TO THE PROTECTIONS OR INSURANCE PROVIDED BY THE FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION OR THE SECURITIES INVESTOR PROTECTION CORPORATION. IN ADDITION, ALTHOUGH THE CUSTODIAN MAY MAINTAIN INSURANCE FOR ITS OWN BENEFIT IN CONNECTION WITH ITS BUSINESS, THIS INSURANCE, IF MAINTAINED, IS SOLELY FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE CUSTODIAN AND DOES NOT GUARANTEE OR INSURE THE CLIENT IN ANY WAY. |
| 10. | ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF DIGITAL ASSET RISKS |
| A. | General Risks. The Client understands and acknowledges that investing in, buying, and selling Digital Assets presents a variety of risks that are not presented by investing in, buying, and selling products in other, more traditional asset classes. These risks include, but are not limited to, the following: |
| i. | Digital Assets are not legal tender, operate without central authority or banks, and are not backed by any government. |
| ii. | Digital Assets are a new technological innovation with a limited history and are a highly speculative asset class, and as such, have in the past experienced, and are likely in the future to continue to experience, high volatility, including periods of extreme volatility. |
| iii. | Digital Assets could become subject to Forks, and various types of cyberattacks, including but not limited to a “51% Attack” or a “Replay Attack,” as described in the Policy Statement on Forks attached to this Agreement as Schedule 3. |
| iv. | Trading platforms on which Digital Assets are traded, including exchanges that may be used by the Custodian to fill Trade Orders, may stop operating or shut down due to fraud, technical problems, hackers or malware, and these trading platforms may be more susceptible to fraud and security breaches than established, regulated exchanges for other products. |
| v. | The decentralized, open source protocol of the peer-to-peer computer network supporting a Digital Asset could be affected by internet disruptions, fraud or cybersecurity attacks, and such network may not be adequately maintained and protected by its participants. |
| vi. | Regulatory actions or policies may limit the ability to exchange a Digital Asset or utilize it for payments, and federal, state or foreign governments may restrict the use and exchange of Digital Assets. |
| vii. | It may be or in the future become illegal to acquire, own, sell, or use a Digital Asset in one or more countries, and the regulation of Digital Assets within and outside of the United States is still developing. |
| viii. | A Digital Asset could decline in popularity, acceptance or use, thereby impairing its price and liquidity. |
| B. | Acknowledgement. The risks described in this Section 10 are just some of the risks presented by investing in, buying and selling Digital Assets, and the Client acknowledges that the Client is solely responsible for understanding and accepting the risks involved in investing in, buying, and selling Digital Assets, acknowledges that, subject to the other provisions of this Agreement, the Custodian has no control or influence over such risks, and acknowledges that the Custodian shall not be liable for any loss in value of Digital Assets that occurs in connection, directly or indirectly, with these risks. |
| 11. | REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES |
| A. | General. Each Party hereto represents and warrants to the other Party, as of the date this Agreement, that: |
| i. | It is duly organized and in good standing in its jurisdiction of formation; |
| ii. | It has the requisite power and authority to execute this Agreement and to perform its obligations hereunder; |
| iii. | It has taken all necessary action to authorize the execution and delivery of this Agreement and the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby; |
| iv. | This Agreement, when executed and delivered, will be its legal, valid and binding obligation, enforceable against it in accordance with its terms, except as such enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy or other similar laws; |
| v. | Any consent, authorization or Instruction required in connection with its execution and performance of this Agreement has been provided by any relevant third party; |
| vi. | Any act reasonably required by any relevant governmental or other authority to be done in connection with its execution and performance of this Agreement has been or will be done (and will be renewed if necessary); and |
| vii. | Neither the execution nor performance of this Agreement by such Party will materially breach any applicable Law, contract or other requirement to which such Party is bound. |
| B. | Client. In addition to the general representations set forth in Section 11(A) hereof, the Client also represents, warrants and covenants to the Custodian that: |
| i. | Its operational place of business is in Brazil, and the Trust is incorporated in Delaware, and Client will notify the Custodian before any such locations are changed to another State or foreign country. For informational purposes, the Sponsor’s office is located at PO Box 309, Ugland House, Grand Cayman, KY1-1104, Cayman Islands; the Trustee’s office is located at 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, Delaware 19808; and the Trust Administrator’s office is located at 615 East Michigan Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53202; |
| ii. | It has the requisite power and authority to deposit the Assets in the Custody Account; |
| iii. | Any factual information heretofore or contemporaneously furnished by or on behalf of the Client in writing to the Custodian for purposes of or in connection with the services contemplated by this Agreement is true and accurate in all material respects on the date as of which such information is dated or certified and not incomplete by omitting to state any fact necessary to make such information not misleading in any material respect at such time; provided that, with respect to forecasts or projections, the Client represents only that such information was prepared in good faith based upon assumptions believed to be reasonable at the time; |
| iv. | There is no claim pending, or to the Client’s knowledge, threatened, and no encumbrance or other lien, in each case, that may adversely affect any delivery of Assets made in accordance with this Agreement; |
| v. | It has not relied on any oral or written representation or warranty made by the Custodian or any other person on the Custodian’s behalf, other than those explicitly set forth in Section 11.A. hereof; |
| vi. | It owns the Assets in the Custody Account free and clear of all liens, claims, security interests and encumbrances (except those granted herein) and it has all rights, title and interest in and to the Assets in the Custody Account as necessary for the Custodian to perform its obligations under this Agreement; |
| vii. | It acknowledges that Digital Assets are new forms of assets, that the law regarding their ownership, custody and transfer is developing and uncertain, and that custody of such assets poses certain risks that are not present in the case of more traditional asset classes, including the risks of fraud and theft; and it understands that it will bear such risks and the potential loss or diminution in value of Digital Assets due to (a) changes or developments in the Law or conditions under existing Law in which its rights in and to such Digital Assets are not adequately protected, (b) changes in the Custodian’s policies or procedures made in the Custodian’s sole discretion in light of legal, regulatory, operational, security or reputational risks, (c) an Ineligibility Determination or (d) fraud and theft; |
| viii. | It is not, and no transferee of Assets pursuant to any Digital Asset Debit Request is, (a) the target of any economic, financial or trade sanctions or embargoes, export controls or other restrictive measures imposed by the United States of America (including those administered by the United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control), the European Union, any member state of the European Union, the United Kingdom or the United Nations (the “Sanctions”), or (b) located, organized or resident in a country or territory with which dealings are broadly restricted or prohibited by any Sanctions (as of the date hereof, Crimea, Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria)(any such country, territory, entity or individual described in this clause (ix), a “Sanctioned Party”); |
| ix. | The Client does not know or have any reason to suspect that (a) any part of the Assets are or will be derived from, held for the benefit of, or related in any way to transactions with or on behalf of, any Sanctioned Party, and (b) any Sanctioned Party has or will have any legal or beneficial interest in the Client or any of the Assets; |
| x. | The Client does not know or have any reason to suspect that (a) any part of the Assets was derived from unlawful activities, or (b) any part of the Assets or proceeds of the Assets will be used to finance any unlawful activities; |
| xi. | If the Client is a non-U.S. banking institution (a “Non-U.S. Bank”) or is holding its security entitlement to the Assets credited to the Custody Account directly or indirectly on behalf of or for the benefit of a Non-U.S. Bank, such Non-U.S. Bank (a) maintains a place of business at a fixed address, other than solely a post office box or an electronic address, in a country where the Non-U.S. Bank is authorized to conduct banking activities; (b) at such location, employs one or more individuals on a full-time basis; (c) maintains operating records related to its banking activities; (d) is subject to inspection by the banking authority that licensed the Non-U.S. Bank; and (e) does not provide banking services to any other Non-U.S. Bank that does not have a physical presence in any country and that is not a registered affiliate of such Non-U.S. Bank; |
| xii. | If the Client is an entity holding its security entitlement to the Assets on behalf of any of its own customers, whether or not expressly identified to the Custodian from time to time, any such customers of the Client shall not be customers or indirect customers of the Custodian by virtue of the services provided hereunder; |
| xiii. | If the Client is an entity holding its security entitlement to the Assets credited to the Custody Account on behalf of third parties, (a) the Client is in compliance in all material respects with Sanctions and, as applicable to the Client, the U.S. Bank Secrecy Act, as amended, the U.S. Money Laundering Control Act of 1986, as amended, the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001, as amended, or any similar U.S. federal, state or foreign law or regulation, (b) the Client has anti-money laundering policies and procedures in place reasonably designed to verify the identity of its customers and investors and their sources of funds, and (c) the Client has established the identities of and conducted thorough due diligence with respect to all of its customers or investors who beneficially own or will beneficially own, directly or indirectly, any of the Assets; |
| xiv. | It acknowledges that the Custodian may, with or without prior notice to the Client, “freeze” the Client’s Custody Account, or any other Assets of the Client in the Custodian’s possession or control, including, but not limited to, prohibiting transfers, declining any Cash Debit Request, Cash Credit Request, Digital Asset Debit Request or Digital Asset Credit Request, and/or segregating Assets or property, if the Custodian determines, suspects, or is advised that such actions are necessary or advisable to comply with any applicable anti-money laundering, OFAC or other laws or regulations in any relevant jurisdiction. The Client acknowledges that the Custodian may be required to report transactions that raise suspicions of money laundering or OFAC violations and to disclose the identity of the Client and any related parties to appropriate government authorities; |
| xv. | It does conduct and intends to continue to conduct its business in material compliance with all applicable Laws, and has obtained all regulatory licenses, approvals and consents necessary to carry on its business as now conducted; without limiting the generality of the foregoing, it will not use the services provided by Custodian hereunder in any manner that is, or would result in, a violation of any applicable Law; |
| xvi. | It is aware of and familiar with, and has been fully informed of, the risks associated with giving Proper Instructions, and is willing to accept such risks, and it shall (and shall cause each Authorized Person to) safeguard and treat with extreme care any devices or credentials related to Proper Instructions, understands that there may be alternative methods of giving or delivering the same than the methods selected by the Custodian, agrees that the security procedures (if any) to be followed in connection therewith provide a commercially reasonable degree of protection in light of its particular needs and circumstances, and acknowledges and agrees that a deposit or withdrawal request may conclusively be presumed by the Custodian to have been given by Authorized Person(s) duly authorized to do so, and may be acted upon as given; and |
| xvii. | It has determined, and agrees that the services are appropriate and desirable for the Client and that it is solely responsible for ensuring, that the services offered by the Custodian under this Agreement are appropriate for its intended use and comply with the Client’s applicable legal, regulatory, contractual, and operational obligations, including, but not limited to, determining whether the services provided by the Custodian hereunder are sufficient for satisfying any obligation of the Client to arrange for a qualified custodian to maintain Client funds and securities under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended. The Custodian makes no express or implied warranty, guarantee, or representation that the services offered by the Custodian under this Agreement satisfy any legal or regulatory requirements applicable to the custody of Client Assets. The Custodian shall have no liability whatsoever for, and the Client shall indemnify and hold the Custodian harmless against, any loss in value of the Assets held by the Custodian on the Client’s behalf and any other loss, expense, cost or liability of any kind incurred by the Custodian arising directly or indirectly out of the Client’s failure or alleged failure to comply with any Law, contract or operational requirements applicable to the Client, including, but not limited to, any Law applicable to the custody of Client Assets, except to the extent such loss, expense, cost or liability results from the Custodian’s, gross negligence, willful misconduct, or fraud. |
| C. | Custodian. The Custodian represents to the Client that the Custodian is (A) a New York State limited liability trust company authorized pursuant to Section 102-a of the New York Banking Law to engage in all activities described in Sections 96 and 100 of the New York Banking Law, with the exception of accepting deposits and making loans, and (B) a “bank” as defined in Section 202(a) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended. |
| 12. | SCOPE OF RESPONSIBILITY |
| A. | Standard of Care. The Custodian shall exercise the reasonable care of a professional custodian for hire. |
| B. | Limitations on Liability and Losses. |
| i. | In no event will the Custodian be responsible or liable for any loss, claim or damage suffered by the Client, except to the extent of a final, non-appealable judicial determination that such loss, claim or damage directly resulted from the gross negligence, willful misconduct or fraud of the Custodian. In the event of such final, non-appealable judicial determination, the liability of the Custodian will not exceed the lesser of (a) the replacement cost of any Assets and (b) the market value of the Assets (as determined by the Custodian) to which such loss or damage relates at the time the Client reasonably should have been aware of such gross negligence, willful misconduct or fraud. In the event of any loss sustained by the Client for which the Custodian is liable hereunder, the liability of the Custodian shall be reduced to the extent that the Client’s own conduct contributed to such loss. |
| ii. | The Custodian shall not be liable for any loss caused, directly or indirectly, by (a) the failure of the Client to adhere to the Custodian’s policies and procedures that have been disclosed to the Client, (b) a Force Majeure Event or (c) any action taken pursuant to Section 6.E. |
| iii. | Under no circumstances will the Custodian be liable to the Client for (a) acting in accordance with or conclusively relying upon any Proper Instruction that it believes in good faith to have been authorized by the Client or any Person acting on behalf of the Client, or (b) any indirect, consequential, incidental, special or punitive loss or damage, even if the Custodian has been advised of or otherwise might have anticipated the possibility of such loss or damage. |
| iv. | The Custodian shall not be responsible or liable to the Client for any loss caused, directly or indirectly, by (a) any failure or delay to act by any service provider to the Custodian or (b) any System Failure (other than a System Failure caused by the, gross negligence, willful misconduct or fraud of the Custodian or the Custodian’s affiliates), that prevents the Custodian from fulfilling its obligations under this Agreement. |
| C. | Limitations on the Custodian’s Responsibility |
| i. | General. The Custodian shall only be responsible for the performance of those duties as are expressly set forth herein, including acting in accordance with any Proper Instructions given in accordance with this Agreement. This Agreement sets forth the terms by which the Custodian shall satisfy each of its duties under Article 8 of the UCC. The Custodian shall have no implied duties or other obligations whatsoever. The Custodian shall not be subject to, nor required to comply with, any other agreement to which the Client is a party. |
| ii. | No Liability for Third Parties. The Custodian, provided that the Custodian shall have acted in good faith and used reasonable care in the selection and continued appointment of the third party and subject to clause iii below, is not responsible or liable for the acts, omissions, defaults, insolvency, negligence, gross negligence, misconduct or fraud of any third party selected by the Custodian to perform any of its duties or obligations under this Agreement, other than any Affiliated Agent. The Custodian shall provide the Client with written notice as soon as reasonably practicable of the appointment of any unaffiliated sub-custodian of Client Digital Assets. In addition, and subject to clause iii below, in no event shall the Custodian be liable for the acts, omissions, defaults, insolvency, negligence, gross negligence, misconduct or fraud of any other third party. |
| iii. | Sole Obligations of the Custodian. The Client understands and agrees that notwithstanding any delegation by the Custodian of any of its obligations and duties to any affiliate of the Custodian (defined as an “Affiliated Agent”), no such agreement with any Affiliated Agent shall discharge the Custodian from its obligations hereunder, and the rights of the Client with respect to the Custodian extend only to the Custodian and do not extend to any Affiliated Agent of the Custodian. The Client shall have no direct or indirect rights or causes of action against any Affiliated Agent, nor shall any Affiliated Agent have any responsibility or liability to any Client of the Custodian. |
| iv. | Performance Subject to Laws. The Client understands and agrees that the Custodian’s performance of this Agreement may be subject to relevant Laws and any rules, operating procedures, practices, and protocols related to Digital Assets, all of which may be subject to change. The Custodian may from time to time review and amend its policies and procedures or impose such additional policies and procedures as the Custodian, in its discretion, considers necessary or advisable due to change in any Law, including any Law related to Digital Assets. |
| v. | Preventing of Performance. The Custodian will not be responsible for any failure to perform any of its obligations if such performance is prevented, hindered or delayed by a Force Majeure Event, by changes in the Custodian’s policies or procedures made in the Custodian’s sole discretion in light of legal, regulatory, operational, security or reputational risks or after an Ineligibility Determination. In such case, the Custodian’s obligations will be suspended for so long as the Force Majeure Event continues or any change in the Custodian’s policies or procedures or Ineligibility Determination remains in effect. |
| vi. | Validity of Assets. The Custodian does not warrant or guarantee the form, authenticity, value or validity of any Asset received by the Custodian. |
| vii. | No Fiduciary Duties. The Custodian has no fiduciary duty to the Client in any respect, including with respect to the Assets held in the Custody Account under this Agreement (irrespective of whether an affiliate of the Custodian has provided other services or is currently providing other services to the Client on other matters). |
| viii. | Capacity of Custodian. For the avoidance of doubt, the Custodian is not acting as an investment manager or as a broker or dealer (as respectively defined in the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended), nor is it acting as an investment, financial, legal or tax adviser to the Client. This Agreement is an arm’s length, commercial transaction between the Client and the Custodian. The Custodian is not recommending that the Client take any investment or other action with respect to the Assets held in the Custody Account under this Agreement. |
| ix. | Forwarded Information; Contents of Documents. The Custodian is not responsible for the form, accuracy or content of any notice, circular, report, announcement or other material provided under Section 6.B.ii of this Agreement not prepared by the Custodian and the Custodian shall not be required to make any investigation into the facts or matters stated in any certificate, report, or other document. |
| x. | Security of Assets. The Custodian shall not be liable to the Client for any loss resulting from actions taken by the Custodian to inspect, protect or improve the security of the Client’s Assets pursuant to Section 6.E. |
| xi. | Conflicting Claims. In the event of any dispute or conflicting claims by any person or persons with respect to the Assets, the Custodian shall be entitled to refuse to act until either (a) such dispute or conflicting claim shall have been finally determined by a court of competent jurisdiction or settled by agreement between conflicting parties, and the Custodian shall have received written evidence satisfactory to it of such determination or agreement or (b) the Custodian shall have received an indemnity, security or both, satisfactory to it and sufficient to hold it harmless from and against any and all loss, liability and expense that the Custodian may incur as a result of its actions. |
| xii. | Legal and Regulatory Compliance. The Custodian shall have no obligation to review, monitor or otherwise ensure compliance by the Client or the Sponsorwith (a) any Law applicable to the Client or the Sponsoror (b) any term or condition of any agreement between the Client and any third party, including the Sponsor. The Custodian conducts and intends to continue to conduct its business in material compliance with all applicable Laws. |
| xiii. | Reliance on Written Items. The Custodian may rely on and shall be protected in acting or refraining from acting upon any written notice, instruction, statement, certificate, request, waiver, consent, opinion, report, receipt or other paper or document furnished to it in accordance with this Agreement, not only as to its due execution and validity, but also as to the truth and accuracy of any information therein contained, which it in good faith believes to be genuine and signed or presented by an Authorized Person. The Custodian shall be entitled to presume the genuineness and due authority of any signature appearing thereon. The Custodian shall not be bound to make any independent investigation into the facts or matters stated in any such notice, instruction, statement, certificate, request, waiver, consent, opinion, report, receipt or other paper or document. |
| D. | Client Obligations. |
| i. | The Client agrees to pay all fees, expenses, charges and obligations incurred from time to time for any services pursuant to this Agreement as determined in accordance with the terms of the Fee Schedule attached hereto, which may be changed from time to time by the Custodian upon prior written notice to the Client or the Sponsor, together with any other amounts payable to the Custodian under the Agreement. The Client authorizes the Sponsor to acknowledge receipt of any changes to the Fee Schedule on behalf of the Client without providing prior notice to or obtaining prior consent from the Client. Unless otherwise agreed, all fees and expenses paid to the Custodian shall be paid in U.S. Dollars. |
| ii. | The Client hereby acknowledges that the Custodian is subject to various laws including those verifying the identities of customers, pursuant to which the Custodian will obtain, verify and record information that allows the Custodian to identify each Client. Accordingly, prior to entering into this Agreement, the Custodian will ask the Client to provide certain information including, but not limited to, the Client’s name, physical address, tax identification number and other information that will help the Custodian to identify and verify the Client’s identity, such as organizational documents, certificate of good standing, license to do business or other pertinent identifying information. The Custodian may obtain and verify comparable information for any Authorized Person. The Client shall provide the Custodian with documentation to allow for obtaining and verifying the beneficial owners and control persons of customers that are legal entities. The Client acknowledges that the Custodian cannot provide services under this Agreement until the Custodian verifies the identity of the Client (and, if applicable, Authorized Persons and/or beneficial owners) in accordance with its customer identification and verification procedures. The Client’s Custody Account may be restricted or closed if the Custodian cannot obtain and verify this information. The Custodian will not be responsible for any losses or damages (including, but not limited to, lost opportunities) that may result if a Client’s Custody Account is restricted or closed. |
| iii. | The Client will promptly provide the Custodian with such additional information and documentation (including, as applicable, by executing additional documentation) as the Custodian may request to identify the owner(s) of Assets, for the Custodian to comply with applicable Law and its policies and procedures, and to enable the Custodian to perform its duties and obligations under this Agreement. |
| iv. | The Client shall promptly inform the Custodian if (a) the Client is or becomes a Sanctioned Person, (b) the Client is or becomes located, organized, or resident in, or begins to conduct business in or with a country or territory with which dealings are broadly restricted or prohibited by any Sanctions (including, as of the date hereof, Crimea, Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria) or (c) the Client becomes aware that the Client or any Asset, or any transaction involving an Asset, is or becomes the target of any Sanctions or investigation (including the reasonable details thereof). |
| v. | The Client shall not grant any other Person a lien, security interest, charge or similar rights or claims against the Assets without the Custodian’s prior consent. |
| vi. | In giving any Instructions which purport to be Proper Instructions under this Agreement, the Client will act, and will cause the Sponsor to act, in accordance with the provisions of any and all constitutional documents of the Client, any and all documents governing the Assets and any related laws and regulations. |
| vii. | The Client and its Authorized Persons are responsible for creating a strong password and maintaining adequate security and control of any and all IDs, passwords, hints, personal identification numbers, or any other codes that the Client and any Authorized Person uses to access the services provided by the Custodian under this Agreement. Any loss or compromise of the foregoing information and/or the Client’s personal information may result in unauthorized access to the Custody Account by third-parties and the loss or theft of any Digital Assets or Assets held in the Custody Account and any associated accounts. The Client is responsible for keeping the Client’s contact information, including email address and telephone number, up to date in order to receive any notices or alerts that the Custodian may send to the Client. The Custodian assumes no responsibility for any loss that the Client may sustain due to compromise of account login credentials not due to fault of the Custodian, or due to any failure by the Client, any Authorized Person or the Sponsor to follow or act on any notices or alerts that the Custodian may send to the Client, an Authorized Person or the Sponsor. |
| viii. | At any time, the Custodian may request Instructions from any Authorized Person or Sponsor (or Person that the Custodian believes in good faith to be an Authorized Person or Sponsor), and may consult with its own legal counsel or outside legal counsel for the Client with respect to any matter arising in connection with the services to be performed by the Custodian under this Agreement. |
| 13. | INDEMNITY TO THE CUSTODIAN |
| A. | Indemnity to the Custodian. The Client agrees to indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Custodian, its parent companies, subsidiaries and affiliates, and its and their directors, officers, agents and employees, against any and all claims, costs, causes of action, losses, liabilities, lawsuits, demands and damages, fines, penalties and expenses, including without limitation, any and all court costs and reasonable attorney’s fees, in any way related to or arising out of or in connection with this Agreement or any action taken or not taken pursuant hereto, except to the extent that the Custodian would be liable under Section 12.B hereunder. The foregoing indemnifications shall survive any termination of this Agreement. |
| B. | Client’s Direct Liability. The disclosure by the Client to the Custodian that the Client has entered into this Agreement as the agent or representative of another person shall not relieve the Client of any of its obligations under this Agreement, including those described in Section 13.A above. |
| 14. | CLIENT FINAL DISTRIBUTION OF ASSETS |
The Client agrees that the Assets will be finally distributed, transferred and delivered to the Client only upon the Client’s indefeasible payment in full of any amounts due and owing to the Custodian hereunder.
| 15. | REMEDIES UPON NONPAYMENT |
If the Client, upon demand, fails to pay the Custodian any required amount in respect of any Asset subject to this Agreement, the Custodian may, without notice to the Client (except as required by Law) and at any time appropriate, sell such Asset and/or exercise in respect of each such Asset any and all the rights and remedies of a secured party on default under applicable Law.
| 16. | LIEN AND SET OFF |
In addition to all rights and remedies available to the Custodian under applicable Law, the Custodian shall have, and the Client hereby grants to the Custodian, a continuing lien on and valid and perfected first-priority security interest in all Assets in the Custody Account as security for the prompt and complete payment and performance of all obligations until the satisfaction of all liabilities of the Client to the Custodian arising under this Agreement, including without limitation liabilities in respect of any fees and expenses or credit exposures in relation to the Custody Account incurred in the performance of services under this Agreement. Custodian shall have all the remedies of a secured party under the Uniform Commercial Code in effect in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Client shall not grant any other Person a lien, security interest, charge or similar rights or claims against the Assets without the Custodian’s prior written consent.
Without limiting any other rights and remedies of the Custodian under this Agreement or applicable Law, to the extent permitted by applicable Law, the Custodian may, with prior notice to the Client, set off any payment obligation owed to the Custodian by the Client against any payment obligations owed by the Custodian to the Client, regardless of the place of payment, delivery and/or currency of any obligation (and for such purposes may make any necessary conversions of currencies or Digital Assets). If any obligation is unliquidated or unascertained, the Custodian may set off an amount estimated by the Custodian in good faith to be the amount of that obligation.
| 17. | RECORDS |
The Client shall examine each statement sent by the Custodian and notify the Custodian in writing within five (5) Business Days of the date of such statement of (A) any discrepancy between Instructions given by the Client and the position shown on the statement and (B) any other errors known to the Client. Absent such timely notification, the Custodian’s liability for any loss or damage in regards to such discrepancy shall not accrue beyond such five (5) Business Day period.
| 18. | CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION |
Each of the Custodian and the Client agrees that it will maintain any confidential and proprietary information disclosed to it by the other Party hereto (“Confidential Information”), in a confidential manner using the same care it uses to protect the confidentiality of its own confidential information, and will not use for its own benefit or otherwise the Confidential Information of the other Party except (x) as expressly authorized by this Agreement and to the extent necessary for performance of this Agreement or (y) upon the prior written consent of the other Party; provided, however, that each of the Custodian and the Client may disclose any such confidential or proprietary information of the other Party to those of its (a) affiliates and its and their officers, directors, and employees (“Affiliate Representatives”) who need to know such information for purposes of this Agreement, and (b) agents (including its accountants, attorneys and financial advisors), service providers, and contractors (“Other Representatives”) who need to know such information to support a Party’s performance of its obligations or exercise of its rights under this Agreement and who are bound by confidentiality obligations consistent with the terms hereof. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Confidential Information shall not include information that was (a) publicly available prior to disclosure by such disclosing party; (b) already in the receiving party’s possession and not subject to an obligation of confidentiality; (c) obtained by the receiving party from a third party without restriction on disclosure; (d) entirely independently developed by the receiving party without reference to any Confidential Information of the disclosing party; and (e) the tax treatment and any facts that may be relevant to the income tax consequences of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement. The Client shall treat the terms of this Agreement, including the fees set forth on Schedule 1 hereto, as Confidential Information.
If, at any time, the receiving party is required by law or regulation to make any disclosure of any of the Confidential Information, by summons, subpoena, judicial or administrative order or otherwise, the receiving party shall (to the extent permissible and practicable under the circumstances) give prompt prior written notice of such requirement to the disclosing party and permit the disclosing party to intervene in any relevant proceedings to protect its interests in the Confidential Information, and provide reasonable cooperation and assistance to the disclosing party in lawful efforts to resist, limit or delay disclosure at the disclosing party’s sole expense. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Custodian may disclose the Client’s Confidential Information to the Custodian’s regulators without any notice thereof.
The receiving party shall promptly notify the disclosing party in writing of any loss, or use, access or disclosure of Confidential Information of the disclosing party in violation of this Agreement promptly following recipient’s discovery and shall promptly take measures to minimize the effect and prevent its recurrence. The receiving party shall be liable under this Agreement to the disclosing party for any loss, or access, use, or disclosure in violation of this Agreement by itself, its Affiliates Representatives, or its Other Representatives.
| 19. | TRADE NAMES |
The Client acknowledges that the names and logos of the Custodian and its affiliates including, but not limited to, “Fidelity”, “Fidelity InvestmentsÒ” and “Fidelity Digital Assets” (collectively, “Names”) are proprietary trademarks and trade names and are of significant value and importance. Client will not undertake any written or oral sales, advertising, press release, marketing, promotional or solicitation activities which identify, make reference to or otherwise use these Names, or suggest either orally or in writing that Client is an agent or partner of, affiliated with or in any way part of the Fidelity organization, except as otherwise approved in writing by the Custodian. No reference to the Custodian or Fidelity companies may be made in such a way as to potentially mislead customers of the Client.
Notwithstanding the preceding paragraph, during the term of this Agreement, Client shall have permission to use the Custodian’s full legal entity name, Fidelity Digital Asset Services, LLC or its associated trade name, Fidelity Digital Assets, (a) in communications to regulatory authorities having jurisdiction over the Client and (b) in non-public communications with its own current or prospective customers or investors when referring to the Custodian as providing custody, trade execution or other applicable services, as the case may be, as a simple statement of fact, in each case, without providing notice to, or receiving prior written consent from the Custodian.
| 20. | TERMINATION |
| A. | Term. The term of this Agreement shall commence on the Effective Date and terminate when terminated pursuant to this Section 20 (the “Term”). |
| B. | Termination. Either Party may terminate this Agreement in whole or in part, with or without cause, by giving not less than thirty (30) days’ prior written notice to the other Party. |
| C. | Immediate Termination by Either Party. Without prejudice to any accrued rights and remedies under this Agreement, either Party may terminate this Agreement immediately by giving written notice to the other Party upon the occurrence of any of the following events (provided such notice to terminate is given within three (3) months following the occurrence of the event): |
| i. | if the other Party commits any material breach of any of its obligations under this Agreement and, in the case of any breach which is capable of remedy, fails to remedy such breach within seven (7) days of delivery of a written notice to the other Party specifying such breach (or such longer period as the notice may specify); or |
| ii. | if the other Party becomes insolvent, enters into liquidation (apart from solvent liquidation for the purposes of amalgamation or reconstruction) or is dissolved or declared bankrupt or has a receiver, administrator or administrative receiver appointed over all or a substantial part of its assets or enters into an arrangement with its creditors or takes or suffers similar action. |
| D. | Immediate Termination by Custodian. Without prejudice to any accrued rights and remedies under this Agreement, the Custodian may terminate this Agreement immediately by giving written notice to the Client if in its sole discretion it has determined that (i) continuing to provide services under this Agreement would result in violation of any Law, (ii) any of the representations or warranties made by the Client under this Agreement cease to be true on a continuing basis or that (iii) the Client has conducted or participated in any activity, transaction or conduct that may present a material adverse impact or reflection on the Custodian’s reputation. |
| E. | Effect on Assets. Upon termination of this Agreement and subject to Section 14 hereof, the Custodian shall deliver the Client’s Assets as instructed by the Client in writing. If by the termination date the Client has not given instructions to the Custodian regarding where to deliver any Assets, the Custodian will continue to maintain the Custody Account until the Client provides such Proper Instructions to effect a free delivery of such Assets, and the Client shall be liable to pay monthly storage fees in the amount determined by the Custodian until all Assets are removed. Notwithstanding termination of this Agreement or any Proper Instruction, the Custodian may retain sufficient Assets to close out or complete any transaction that was in process prior to such termination or to pay any fees of the Custodian or amounts otherwise outstanding hereunder. |
| F. | Surviving Terms. The rights and obligations contained in Sections 7, 11, 13, 15, 16, 18 and 19 of this Agreement shall survive the termination of this Agreement. |
| 21. | GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION |
| A. | Governing Law. This Agreement is solely and exclusively governed, construed and enforced in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, without giving effect to conflict of law rules or principles that would cause the application of the laws of any other jurisdiction. |
| B. | Jurisdiction. Both Parties submit to personal jurisdiction in the federal and state courts located in Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and further agree that any and all claims and controversies arising out of this Agreement that cannot be amicably resolved by the Parties shall be brought solely and exclusively in a court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. |
| C. | Venue. Each Party hereto waives any objection it may have at any time, to the laying of venue of any actions or proceedings brought in an inconvenient forum and further waives the rights to object that such court does not have jurisdiction over such parties. |
| D. | Negotiated Agreement. Each Party acknowledges that it (i) has been represented by counsel (or has had the opportunity to be represented by counsel and waived its right to do so) with respect to this Agreement; and (ii) has had the opportunity to negotiate the terms of this Agreement, including the foregoing governing law and jurisdiction provisions, and that it has freely contracted to bind itself to such provisions based on its own judgment and not on any representations made by any other party, other than those contained herein. |
| 22. | MISCELLANEOUS |
| A. | Entire Agreement; Amendments. This Agreement, including all exhibits and schedules, constitutes the entire Agreement and understanding between the Parties, and supersedes all previous communications, representations or agreements, whether written or oral, with respect to the subject matter hereof. In the event that this Agreement conflicts with any exhibit, schedule, or terms of use, the terms of this Agreement shall control and govern. Except as specified in this Agreement, this Agreement may be modified only by written agreement signed by both Parties. |
| B. | Notices. For the purposes of any notices or other communications required to be delivered hereunder, the Custodian’s address shall be 245 Summer Street, Boston, MA 02210 and the Client’s address shall be as set forth in the account opening documentation provided by the Client to the Custodian, as updated from time to time. Either Party may provide such notice by sending written notice by registered or certified mail or by e-mail to the address designated by the other Party. Any notices provided under this provision shall be effective, upon receipt (in the case of registered or certified mail) or by the recipient acknowledging receipt (in the case of e-mail). |
| C. | Third Parties. This Agreement is not intended to confer any rights or benefits to any third parties, including, but not limited to, the Client’s affiliates, employees, customers, counterparties or investors. |
| D. | Severability. If any provision of this Agreement is or becomes illegal, invalid, or unenforceable under any applicable Law, the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect (as shall that provision under any other law). |
| E. | Waiver of Rights. No failure or delay of the Client or the Custodian in exercising any right or remedy under this Agreement shall constitute a waiver of that right. Any waiver of any right will be limited to the specific instance. The exclusion or omission of any provision or term from this Agreement shall not be deemed to be a waiver of any right or remedy the Client or the Custodian may have under applicable Law. |
| F. | Recordings. The Client and the Custodian consent to telephonic or electronic recordings for security and quality of service purposes and agree that either may produce telephonic or electronic recordings or computer records as evidence in any proceedings brought in connection with this Agreement. |
| G. | Assignment. The Custodian may assign this Agreement, delegate its duties hereunder, and transfer the Custody Account to any of its affiliates or to its successors and assigns, whether by merger, consolidation, or otherwise, in each case, provided that the Custodian shall provide the Client with written notice of any such assignment. The Client may not assign or transfer any of its rights or obligations under this Agreement without the Custodian’s prior written consent. Any attempted transfer or assignment in violation hereof shall be null and void. |
| H. | No Agency. Nothing contained in this Agreement shall constitute the Client and/or the Custodian (and/or any other Person) as members of any partnership, joint venture, association, syndicate, unincorporated business or similar assignment as a result of or by virtue of the engagement or relationship established by this Agreement. Neither the Client nor the Custodian shall hold itself out as an agent, partner or joint venture partner of the other or any of the subsidiaries or companies controlled directly or indirectly by or affiliated with the other. |
| I. | No Affiliate Obligations. The Client acknowledges and agrees that (i) the obligations and duties of the Custodian hereunder apply only to the Custodian and are not obligations or duties of any other member of the Fidelity organization; (ii) notwithstanding any affiliation of the Custodian with the Fidelity organization or any member thereof (including FMR LLC, the parent company of the Custodian), this Agreement is with the Custodian only, and the rights of the Client under this Agreement apply only to the Custodian and not to FMR LLC or any other affiliate of the Custodian; and (iii) the Custodian may in its sole and absolute discretion in the performance of its responsibilities hereunder make such arrangements as it sees fit with any affiliate to have access to and use the services and resources of its affiliates, and in such event, the Custodian alone shall remain solely responsible to the Client for the provision of services hereunder and any such affiliate shall have no duty, responsibility or liability whatsoever to any Client in connection herewith. |
| J. | Other Business. Nothing herein shall prevent the Custodian or any of its affiliates from engaging in other business, or from entering into any other transaction or financial or other relationship with, or receiving fees from or from rendering services of any kind to the Client or any other Person. The Custodian and its affiliates may own and trade Digital Assets and are not prohibited from engaging in other business or activities, including those that might be in direct competition with the Client. The Custodian and its affiliates (or funds or other accounts advised or managed by them) may have investments in, or other commercial arrangements with, counterparties that fill Trade Orders or other service providers to the Custodian. Affiliates of the Custodian (and funds or other accounts advised or managed by them) may themselves utilize the Custodian’s trade execution service and submit Trade Orders that could be internally crossed with Trade Orders of the Client. |
| K. | Headings. Titles to Sections of this Agreement are included for convenience of reference only and shall be disregarded in construing the language contained in this Agreement. |
| L. | Counterparts; Electronic Signatures. This Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same agreement. This Agreement may be accepted, executed, and agreed to through the use of electronic signatures and electronic transmission. |
[signature page follows]
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be executed by their respective officers thereunto duly authorized.
| HASHDEX NASDAQ CRYPTO INDEX US ETF | ||
| By: | ||
| Name: | ||
| Title: | ||
| FIDELITY DIGITAL ASSET SERVICES, LLC | ||
| By: | ||
| Name: | ||
| Title: | ||
Schedule 1
[Reserved]
Schedule 2
[Reserved]
Schedule 3
[Reserved]
28
Exhibit 10.3
MASTER PURCHASE AGREEMENT
Cumberland DRW LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (“Cumberland”) and the Counterparty identified below (“Counterparty” and, together with Cumberland, the “Parties” and each a “Party”) are entering into this Master Purchase Agreement as of the date set forth below.
By signing below, Counterparty agrees to be bound by this Master Purchase Agreement, including the attached Terms of Business (Appendix I), the attached Settlement Terms (Appendix II) and the attached Supplemental Terms (Appendix III) (each of which Counterparty hereby acknowledges receiving), which are incorporated by reference herein, and represents that all information provided below is accurate and complete.
BY SIGNING BELOW, COUNTERPARTY ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THIS MASTER PURCHASE AGREEMENT CONTAINS A PRE-DISPUTE ARBITRATION CLAUSE IN SECTION 5.5 OF THE TERMS OF BUSINESS AND THAT COUNTERPARTY HAS RECEIVED, READ, UNDERSTOOD, AND AGREED TO THE TERMS THEREOF.
The individual signing below represents and warrants to Cumberland that he or she is duly authorized and has legal capacity to execute and deliver this Master Purchase Agreement.
| Counterparty Name: | Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF | ![]() |
| Signature: | /s/ Bruno Sousa | |
| Name: | Bruno Sousa | |
| Title: | Director | |
| Date: | 7/16/2025 |
Counterparty Address for Notices:
Rua Ataulfo de Paiva 1120, Leblon, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro CEP: 22.440-035, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 22.440-035
Attention: Diogo Bezerra
Email: compliance@hashdex.com
Jurisdiction in which Counterparty was organized/formed (if applicable): United States, Delaware
Counterparty type of entity (corporation, limited liability company, etc.) (if applicable): Trust
|
ACKNOWLEDGED AND AGREED:
CUMBERLAND DRW LLC |
||
| By: | /s/ Chris Zuehlke | |
| Name: | Chris Zuehlke | |
| Title: | Manager | |
|
Note: To enable expedient execution, Cumberland has signed this Master Purchase Agreement. Any modifications or amendments to this Master Purchase Agreement will render this Master Purchase Agreement and Cumberland’s signature null and void. |
APPENDIX I
TERMS OF BUSINESS
ARTICLE 1
DEFINITIONS
Section 1.1 Definitions. In addition to the capitalized terms defined elsewhere in this Agreement, the following capitalized terms shall have the meanings specified in this Section 1.1:
“Affiliate” shall mean any entity controlling, controlled by or under common control with a Party.
“Applicable Law” shall mean all applicable constitutions, statutes, regulations, rules, judgments, orders, judicial decisions, decrees, rulings, charges, ordinances, and other requirements of any government, governmental agency, or court.
“Applicable Pricing Source” shall mean the index, exchange, cryptoasset pricing service, or other pricing source or methodology to be mutually agreed between the Parties, provided, however, that if such index, exchange, cryptoasset pricing service or other pricing source or methodology (i) is unavailable at a relevant time for purposes of determining the Reference Price, or (ii) reflects a price for the relevant cryptoasset at a relevant time for purposes of determining the Reference Price, that Cumberland reasonably determines is an obvious error (i.e., the reflected price is substantially inconsistent with current trading patterns such that Cumberland reasonably determines the such price to be a manifest error), then any index, exchange, cryptoasset pricing service, or other pricing source or methodology as selected in good faith by Cumberland.
“Agreement” shall mean, collectively, this Master Purchase Agreement completed and executed by Counterparty, including these Terms of Business, the Settlement Terms set forth as Appendix II and the Supplemental Terms set forth as Appendix III.
“Business Day” shall mean any day which is not a Saturday or Sunday or a bank holiday in the United States.
“Continuously-Calculated TWAP” shall mean a continuous average of the Reference Price over the Pricing Period as calculated by Cumberland using its proprietary averaging methodology.
“Counterparty Purchased Cryptoassets” shall mean, with respect to a transaction in which Cumberland is selling cryptoassets to Counterparty, the number of units of such cryptoasset to be sold.
“Counterparty Purchase Price” shall mean, with respect to a transaction in which Cumberland is selling cryptoassets to Counterparty, the price to be paid by Counterparty to Cumberland for the relevant Counterparty Purchased Cryptoassets, which purchase price may be denominated in a fiat currency or another cryptoasset.
“Counterparty Wallet” shall mean the applicable location, wallet, address, account or storage device designated by Counterparty for delivery or receipt of cryptoassets hereunder.
“Cumberland Discount” shall mean the discount from the Reference Price at which Cumberland shall purchase the relevant cryptoasset from Counterparty via a TWAP Trade.
“Cumberland Premium” shall mean the premium to the Reference Price at which Cumberland shall sell the cryptoasset to Counterparty via a TWAP Trade.
“Cumberland Purchased Cryptoassets” shall mean, with respect to a transaction in which Cumberland is purchasing cryptoassets from Counterparty, the number of units of such cryptoasset to be purchased.
“Cumberland Purchase Price” shall mean, with respect to a transaction in which Cumberland is purchasing cryptoassets from Counterparty, the price to be paid by Cumberland to Counterparty for the relevant Cumberland Purchased Cryptoassets, which purchase price may be denominated in a fiat currency or another cryptoasset.
“Cumberland Wallet” shall mean the applicable location, wallet, address, account or storage device designated by Cumberland for delivery of cryptoassets.
“Interval-Calculated TWAP” shall mean the sum of all Reference Prices at applicable Pricing Intervals during the Pricing Period, divided by the total number of Pricing Intervals in the Pricing Period.
“Non-U.S. Bank” shall mean an organization that (i) is organized under the laws of a country other than the United States, (ii) engages in the business of banking, (iii) is recognized as a bank by the bank supervisory or monetary authority of the country of its organization or principal banking operations, (iv) receives deposits to a substantial extent in the regular course of its business, and (v) has the power to accept demand deposits, but does not include the United States branches or agencies of a non-U.S. bank.
“Non-U.S. Shell Bank” shall mean a Non-U.S. Bank without a Physical Presence in any country, but does not include a regulated affiliate.
“OFAC” shall mean the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control. The lists of OFAC prohibited countries, territories, persons and entities can be found on the OFAC website at http://www.treas.gov/offices/enforcement/ofac/.
“Person” shall mean any individual, corporation, partnership, association, limited liability company, trust, estate or other entity, either individually or collectively.
“Physical Presence” shall mean a place of business that is maintained by a Foreign Bank and is located at a fixed address, other than solely a post office box or an electronic address, in a country in which the Foreign Bank is authorized to conduct banking activities, at which location the Foreign Bank
(i) employs one or more individuals on a full-time basis, (ii) maintains operating records related to its banking activities, and (iii) is subject to inspection by the banking authority that licensed the Foreign Bank to conduct banking activities.
“Pricing Interval” shall mean the interval of time during the Pricing Period at which Cumberland shall measure or otherwise determine the Reference Price in calculating an Interval-Calculated TWAP.
“Pricing Period” shall mean the aggregate period of time over which the Time-Weighted Average Price shall be calculated.
“Reference Price” shall mean the price per unit of the relevant cryptoasset in U.S. Dollars as reflected by the Applicable Pricing Source at a given time, as determined by Cumberland.
“Time-Weighted Average Price” shall mean either (i) an Interval-Calculated TWAP, or (ii) a Continuously-Calculated TWAP, in each case as calculated by Cumberland in its reasonable discretion.
“Trading System” shall mean Cumberland’s proprietary electronic trading system.
“TWAP Trade” shall mean a transaction that is priced by reference to a Time-Weighted Average Price.
“TWAP Trade Quantity” shall mean the total number of units of the relevant cryptoasset to be bought or sold by Counterparty via a TWAP Trade.
ARTICLE 2
SALE AND PURCHASE OF CRYPTOASSETS
Section 2.1 Trading Procedures. During the term of this Agreement and at such times as mutually agreed by the Parties, the Parties may effect transactions in cryptoassets in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Section 2.1 of Appendix I, except that the procedures by which the Parties may effect TWAP Trades are set forth in Section 2.2 of this Appendix I, and the procedures by which the Parties may effect cryptoasset transactions via the Trading System are set forth in Addendum A to this Appendix I.
(a) Counterparty may submit to Cumberland, via electronic and/or telephonic communication, a request to purchase or sell a specified cryptoasset (a “Trade Request”) on either a spot or forward basis.
(b) Upon receipt of a Trade Request, Cumberland may provide to Counterparty, via electronic and/or telephonic communication, a price (which may be denominated in a fiat currency or another cryptoasset) at which it is willing to sell or purchase (as the case may be) a specified quantity of such cryptoasset (a “Cumberland Quote”).
(c) Counterparty must accept a Cumberland Quote by electronic and/or telephonic communication within ten (10) seconds of the time the electronic communication is sent or the time of the telephonic communication (the “Acceptance Window”); provided, however, that Cumberland may withdraw a Cumberland Quote by electronic or telephonic communication at any time prior to Counterparty accepting such Cumberland Quote or the expiry of the Acceptance Window.
(d) If Counterparty accepts the Cumberland Quote within the Acceptance Window, a binding transaction will be deemed to have been executed at the time of acceptance (the “Time of Acceptance”), on the terms set forth in the Cumberland Quote (a “Completed Trade”)
(e) If the Cumberland Quote is not accepted within the Acceptance Window, the Cumberland Quote shall be deemed to be rejected and expire and no transaction shall be effected in respect of such Cumberland Quote.
(f) Notwithstanding Sections 2.1(a) – (d) above, to the extent that Counterparty requests Cumberland Quotes, or receives Cumberland Quotes, through a third-party platform or provider of any sort (a “Third- Party Quote Provider”) and not directly from Cumberland, then Counterparty may, in response to such Cumberland Quote, request, through the Third- Party Quote Provider, to transact with Cumberland on the basis of such Cumberland Quote. If Cumberland accepts such request to transact, a Completed Trade will be deemed to have been executed at the Time of Acceptance by Cumberland.
(g) If Cumberland determines that a Cumberland Quote contained an obvious error with respect to the prices or amounts set forth therein (i.e., execution of a Completed Trade at a price or quantity that is substantially inconsistent with current trading patterns such that Cumberland reasonably determines the price or quantity to be a manifest error), then Cumberland shall have the right to cancel the Completed Trade based upon such Cumberland Quote by delivering notice by any electronic means to Counterparty within two (2) minutes after the Time of Acceptance by Counterparty or Cumberland, as applicable.
Section 2.2 TWAP Trade Execution. TWAP Trades may be effected between the Parties pursuant to the following procedures:
(a) The Parties may execute a TWAP Trade by agreeing in writing to the following terms:
(i) the cryptoasset to be bought/sold by Counterparty;
(ii) whether Counterparty will buy or sell the cryptoasset;
(iii) the TWAP Trade Quantity;
(iv) the Applicable Pricing Source;
(v) the Cumberland Discount or Cumberland Premium (as applicable);
(vi) whether the Time-Weighted Average Price will be an Interval-Calculated TWAP or a Continuously-Calculated TWAP, and if an Interval-Calculated TWAP is to be used, the Pricing Interval;
(vii) the Pricing Period; and
(viii) either (A) a Counterparty Delivery Time, which shall apply to such TWAP Trade and supersede clauses (i) through (iv) of the definition of Counterparty Delivery Time set forth in Appendix II, or (B) that the TWAP Trade will be subject to net settlement pursuant to Paragraph (c) of Appendix II (in which case clause (v) of the definition of Counterparty Delivery Time in Appendix II shall apply).
(b) A Completed Trade shall be deemed to have been executed when the Parties have agreed upon all of the foregoing terms in writing.
(c) If Counterparty is selling cryptoassets, the Cumberland Purchase Price shall be a notional value as calculated by Cumberland in its reasonable discretion and expressed in U.S. Dollars equal to:
(i) the TWAP Trade Quantity, multiplied by
(ii) the product of (A) the Time-Weighted Average Price for such TWAP Trade, multiplied by (B) one minus the Cumberland Discount.
(d) If Counterparty is purchasing cryptoassets, the Counterparty Purchase Price shall be a notional value as calculated by Cumberland in its reasonable discretion and expressed in U.S. Dollars equal to:
(i) the TWAP Trade Quantity, multiplied by
(ii) the product of (A) the Time-Weighted Average Price for such TWAP Trade, multiplied by (B) one plus the Cumberland Premium.
Section 2.3 Trade Summary. Following the execution of a Completed Trade, Cumberland shall send to Counterparty a summary of the terms of such Completed Trade.
(a) Such summary for a Completed Trade that is not a TWAP Trade will include: (i) the type of cryptoassets to be purchased or sold; (ii) whether Cumberland is selling or purchasing the relevant cryptoassets; (iii) the Counterparty Delivery Time, if the Completed Trade is a forward trade; (iv) where Cumberland is selling the relevant cryptoassets, the Counterparty Purchased Cryptoassets and the Counterparty Purchase Price; and (v) where Cumberland is purchasing the relevant cryptoassets, the Cumberland Purchased Cryptoassets and the Cumberland Purchase Price.
(b) Such summary for a Completed Trade that is a TWAP Trade, will include the terms agreed upon by the Parties pursuant to Section 2.2(a) of this Appendix I above.
(c) The Parties acknowledge and agree that (i) the failure of Cumberland to send a summary of the terms of a Completed Trade shall not (A) affect the validity of a Completed Trade or (B) constitute an Event of Default under Section 4.1 of this Appendix I, and (ii) in the event of any discrepancy between any such summary and the terms of this Agreement (including the Counterparty Delivery Time and other settlement terms set forth in Appendix II), the terms of this Agreement shall prevail.
Section 2.4 Purchase and Sale. For each Completed Trade, Counterparty or Cumberland, as the case may be, will sell, transfer and deliver, and the other Party will purchase, all right, title and interest in and to the Cumberland Purchased Cryptoassets or the Counterparty Purchased Cryptoassets, respectively, in accordance with the Settlement Terms set forth in Appendix II.
Section 2.5 Term. This Agreement shall remain in effect until terminated in writing by either Party; provided, however, that any termination shall not affect the Parties’ rights or obligations with respect to any Completed Trades entered into prior to such termination. Sections 2.6 and 2.7 of Appendix I, Article 5 of Appendix I, Section 12 of Addendum A to Appendix I, and Paragraph (d) of Appendix II shall survive termination of this Agreement.
Section 2.6 Data. With respect to any Cumberland Quote, market data or other data or information that Cumberland provides (either directly or through a Third-Party Quote Provider or other third-party) to Counterparty, Counterparty agrees that such Cumberland Quote, data or information is proprietary to Cumberland or its licensors, and Counterparty will not (i) distribute, retransmit, display or otherwise disclose or make available such Cumberland Quote, market data or other data or information to third parties except as required by Applicable Law, nor (ii) enhance, alter or make derivative works from such Cumberland Quote, market data or other data or information, or combine such Cumberland Quote, market data or other data or information with any other information without the prior written consent of Cumberland.
Section 2.7 Third-Party Quote Providers. To the extent that Counterparty requests Cumberland Quotes, or receives Cumberland Quotes, through a Third-Party Quote Provider, Counterparty (i) agrees that Cumberland shall have no liability or responsibility whatsoever for any acts or omissions of any such Third-Party Quote Provider, (ii) agrees to hold Cumberland, its Affiliates and their respective officers, managers, employees, agents and contractors (the “Cumberland Parties”) harmless from, and indemnify them against, any losses, costs, expenses, claims, or damages of any sort (“Losses”) suffered as a result of the acts or omissions of any Third-Party Quote Provider, and (iii) covenants not to sue any Cumberland Party in connection with any Losses suffered or claimed as the result of the act or omission of any Third-Party Quote Provider.
ARTICLE 3
REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES
Section 3.1 Cumberland Representations and Warranties. Cumberland represents and warrants to Counterparty as follows, which representations and warranties shall be deemed to be continuing during the term of this Agreement:
(a) Cumberland is a limited liability company duly organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the State of Delaware. Cumberland has all necessary limited liability company power and authority to enter into this Agreement, to carry out its obligations hereunder and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby. The execution and delivery by Cumberland of this Agreement, the performance by Cumberland of its obligations hereunder and the consummation by Cumberland of the transactions contemplated hereby have been duly authorized by all requisite company action on the part of Cumberland.
(b) This Agreement has been duly executed and delivered by Cumberland and (assuming due authorization, execution and delivery by Counterparty) constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of Cumberland, enforceable against Cumberland in accordance with its terms, except as limited by applicable bankruptcy, liquidation, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, fraudulent conveyance, and any other laws of general application affecting enforcement of creditors’ rights generally.
(c) Neither the execution and delivery of this Agreement, nor the execution or consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, does or will violate any statute, regulation, rule, judgment, order, decree, ruling, charge or other restriction of any government, governmental agency, or court to which Cumberland is subject or conflict with, violate or constitute a default under any agreement, debt or other instrument to which Cumberland is a party.
(d) None of Cumberland, any Person who controls Cumberland, nor any direct or indirect owner of Cumberland: (i) bears a name that appears on the List of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons maintained by OFAC from time to time; (ii) is a Non-U.S. Shell Bank; or (iii) resides in or transfers funds from or through an account in Cuba, Iran, North Korea, or in any other country or territory included on a list of prohibited jurisdictions provided in writing by Cumberland to Counterparty.
(e) With respect to any cryptoassets that Cumberland sells, transfers and/or delivers to Counterparty hereunder, Cumberland is the lawful owner of such cryptoassets with good and marketable title thereto, and Cumberland has the absolute right to sell, assign, convey, transfer and deliver such cryptoassets. Such cryptoassets are free and clear of any and all security interests, liens, pledges, claims (pending or threatened), charges, escrows, encumbrances or similar rights.
(f) Cumberland is the sole owner of all cryptoassets in each Cumberland Wallet, and no Person, other than Cumberland, has any right, title, or interest in any such cryptoassets. Each Cumberland Wallet is controlled by, and operated solely for the benefit of, Cumberland.
(g) With respect to any fiat currency that Cumberland transfers and/or delivers to Counterparty hereunder, Cumberland is the lawful owner of such fiat currency and Cumberland has the absolute right to transfer and/or deliver such fiat currency to Counterparty. Such fiat currency is free and clear of any and all security interests, liens, pledges, claims (pending or threatened), charges, escrows, encumbrances or similar rights.
(h) Cumberland is engaging in transactions under this Agreement on a principal basis for its own account. Cumberland is not engaging in transactions under this Agreement as a broker, agent or other similar capacity on behalf of a third party.
Section 3.2 Counterparty Representations and Warranties. Counterparty hereby represents and warrants to Cumberland as follows, which representations and warranties shall be deemed to be continuing during the term of this Agreement:
(a) The information relating to Counterparty set forth on the cover page of this Master Purchase Agreement, the information provided by Counterparty relating to the Counterparty Bank Account, and any other information provided by Counterparty to Cumberland in connection with Cumberland’s onboarding procedures or periodic KYC/AML requests is, in each case, true and complete in all respects, except to the extent that Counterparty has provided prompt notice of any change to Cumberland.
(b) If Counterparty is not a natural person, Counterparty is validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction in which it was formed. Counterparty has all necessary power and authority to enter into this Agreement, to carry out its obligations hereunder and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby. If Counterparty is not a natural person, the execution and delivery by Counterparty of this Agreement, the performance by Counterparty of its obligations hereunder and the consummation by Counterparty of the transactions contemplated hereby have been duly authorized by all requisite action on the part of Counterparty.
(c) This Agreement has been duly executed and delivered by Counterparty and (assuming due authorization, execution and delivery by Cumberland) constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of Counterparty, enforceable against Counterparty in accordance with its terms, except as limited by applicable bankruptcy, liquidation, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, fraudulent conveyance, and any other laws of general application affecting enforcement of creditors’ rights generally.
(d) Neither the execution and delivery of this Agreement, nor the execution or consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, does or will violate any statute, regulation, rule, judgment, order, decree, ruling, charge or other restriction of any government, governmental agency, or court to which Counterparty is subject or conflict with, violate or constitute a default under any agreement, debt or other instrument to which Counterparty is a party.
(e) None of Counterparty, any Person who controls Counterparty if Counterparty is not a natural person, nor any direct or indirect owner of Counterparty: (i) bears a name that appears on the List of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons maintained by OFAC from time to time; (ii) is a Non- U.S. Shell Bank; or (iii) resides in or transfers funds from or through an account in Cuba, Iran, North Korea, or in any other country or territory included on a list of prohibited jurisdictions provided in writing by Cumberland to Counterparty.
(f) With respect to any cryptoassets that Counterparty sells, transfers and/or delivers to Cumberland hereunder, Counterparty is the lawful owner of such cryptoassets with good and marketable title thereto, and Counterparty has the absolute right to sell, assign, convey, transfer and deliver such cryptoassets. Such cryptoassets are free and clear of any and all security interests, liens, pledges, claims (pending or threatened), charges, escrows, encumbrances or similar rights.
(g) Counterparty is the sole owner of all cryptoassets in each Counterparty Wallet, and no Person, other than Counterparty, has any right, title or interest in any such cryptoassets. Each Counterparty Wallet is controlled by, and operated solely for the benefit of, Counterparty.
(h) With respect to any fiat currency that Counterparty transfers and/or delivers to Cumberland hereunder, Counterparty is the lawful owner of such fiat currency and Counterparty has the absolute right to transfer and/or deliver such fiat currency to Cumberland. Such fiat currency is free and clear of any and all security interests, liens, pledges, claims (pending or threatened), charges, escrows, encumbrances or similar rights.
(i) Counterparty is engaging in transactions under this Agreement on a principal basis for its own account. Counterparty is not engaging in transactions under this Agreement as a broker, agent or other similar capacity on behalf of a third party.
(j) No agent, broker, finder or other third party acting on behalf of Counterparty is or will be entitled to any brokers’ or finders’ fee or any other commission or similar fee from Cumberland in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.
Section 3.3 Acknowledgments. Each Party agrees, understands and acknowledges that:
(a) The other Party is not providing and will not provide any fiduciary, advisory, exchange or other similar services to such Party or any Person related to or affiliated with such Party, or in connection with any transaction subject to this Agreement.
(b) Such Party is solely responsible for any decision to enter into a transaction subject to this Agreement, including the evaluation of any and all risks related to any such transaction.
(c) In entering into any transaction subject to this Agreement, such Party has not relied on any statement or other representation of the other Party other than as expressly set forth herein.
ARTICLE 4
EVENTS OF DEFAULT
Section 4.1 Events of Default. Each of the following shall be deemed an “Event of Default” by a Party:
(a) such Party fails to comply with any provision of, or perform any obligation under, this Agreement, including an obligation to deliver to the other Party the Counterparty Purchase Price, Counterparty Purchased Cryptoassets, Cumberland Purchase Price, or Cumberland Purchased Cryptoassets, as the case may be, in connection with any Completed Trade in accordance with the Settlement Terms set forth on Appendix II;
(b) any representation or warranty made by such Party is not or ceases to be true or correct in any material respect;
(c) such Party has instituted against it a proceeding seeking a judgment of insolvency or bankruptcy or any other relief under any bankruptcy or insolvency law or similar law affecting creditors’ rights, or a petition is presented for its winding-up or liquidation, and such proceeding or petition is instituted and either (i) results in a judgment of insolvency or bankruptcy or the entry of an order for relief of the making of an order for its winding-up or liquidation, or (ii) is not dismissed, discharged, stayed or restrained, in each case within sixty (60) days of the institution or presentation thereof; (d) such Party states that it is unable to pay its debts upon maturation;
(e) any regulatory authority with jurisdiction over such Party suspends the conduct of such Party’s usual business or revokes any material authorizations, memberships, licenses or other similar approvals, in each case, in any manner that would reasonably be expected to adversely affect the performance of such Party’s obligations under this Agreement; or
(f) an Event of Default, Potential Event of Default or Termination Event (as defined in the applicable ISDA Master Agreement) has occurred and is continuing with respect to such Party under any ISDA Master Agreement between (i) Cumberland or any of its Affiliates, on the one hand, and
(ii) Counterparty or any of its Affiliates, on the other hand.
Section 4.2 Cumberland Remedies. Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default by Counterparty, Cumberland shall have the right, in its sole discretion, to take any of the following actions:
(a) Cancel and terminate any Completed Trade that has not yet settled and require Counterparty to pay Cumberland an amount reasonably determined by Cumberland to compensate it for any and all losses, costs, expenses, and fees incurred in connection with such cancelled trade, including any loss of bargain, cost of funding, or loss or cost incurred as a result of its terminating, liquidating, obtaining or reestablishing any hedge or related trading position.
(b) Set off and net any obligations of Cumberland to Counterparty against any obligations of Counterparty to Cumberland;
(c) Terminate any or all of Cumberland’s obligations for future performance to Counterparty; and
(d) Take such other actions as Cumberland, in its sole discretion, deems necessary or appropriate for its protection, all without notice or advertisement.
Section 4.3 Counterparty Remedies. Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default by Cumberland, Counterparty shall have the right, in its sole discretion, to seek all such remedies available to Counterparty in law or equity as Counterparty deems necessary or appropriate for its protection, all without notice or advertisement.
ARTICLE 5
MISCELLANEOUS
Section 5.1 Amendments; Waivers. Counterparty agrees that Cumberland may amend the provisions of this Agreement at any time upon fifteen (15) days’ notice to Counterparty. Counterparty acknowledges and agrees that by continuing to trade with Cumberland after such notice period, Counterparty accepts any such amendments to this Agreement, provided, however, that such amendments shall not affect the Parties’ obligations with respect to any Completed Trades entered into prior to such amendments unless expressly agreed to by both Parties in writing. This Agreement may not be otherwise amended without the prior written consent of Cumberland. No consent with respect to any action or omission by a Party shall operate as a consent to, waiver of, or estoppel with respect to, any other or subsequent action or omission. No failure to exercise and no delay in exercising any right, remedy or power hereunder shall operate as a waiver thereof, nor shall any single or partial exercise of any right, remedy or power hereunder preclude any other or further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right, remedy or power provided herein or by law or at equity.
Section 5.2 Assignment; Successors and Assigns. This Agreement shall be binding on and inure to the benefit of the Parties and their respective successors, heirs, personal representatives, and permitted assigns. Counterparty may not assign or delegate its rights or obligations hereunder without the prior written consent of Cumberland, which may be withheld in Cumberland’s sole discretion. Cumberland may not assign or delegate its rights or obligations hereunder without the prior written consent of Counterparty, except that no such consent shall be required in connection with an assignment or delegation by Cumberland to any Affiliate of Cumberland.
Section 5.3 Severability. Whenever possible, each provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in such manner as to be effective and valid under Applicable Law, but if any provision of this Agreement is held to be prohibited by or invalid under Applicable Law, such provision will be ineffective only to the extent of such prohibition or invalidity, without invalidating the remainder of this Agreement.
Section 5.4 Descriptive Headings and Construction. The descriptive headings of this Agreement are inserted for convenience only and do not constitute a part of this Agreement. Unless otherwise indicated, references to Sections herein are references to Sections of this Agreement.
Section 5.5 Governing Law; Venue; Waiver of Jury Trial.
(a) This Agreement shall be governed by, and construed and enforced in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York, without giving effect to the principles of conflicts of law thereof. Subject to Section 5.5(b), each Party hereby agrees that (i) any and all litigation arising out of this Agreement shall be conducted only in state or federal courts located in the State of Illinois, and (ii) such courts shall have the exclusive jurisdiction to hear and decide such matters. EACH PARTY HEREBY EXPRESSLY WAIVES ANY RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY ACTION OR PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY OTHER MATTER INVOLVING THE PARTIES, AND AGREES THAT ANY SUCH ACTION SHALL BE TRIED BEFORE A COURT AND NOT BEFORE A JURY.
(b) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in Section 5.5(a), Counterparty hereby agrees that Cumberland shall have the right to elect to arbitrate and compel arbitration of any dispute hereunder through final and binding arbitration before JAMS (or its successor) (“JAMS”). Cumberland may commence the arbitration process by filing a written demand for arbitration with JAMS, with a copy to Counterparty; provided, however, that either Party may, without inconsistency with this arbitration provision, apply to any court in accordance with Section 5.5(a) and seek injunctive relief until the arbitration award is rendered or the controversy is otherwise resolved. Any arbitration to be conducted pursuant to this Section 5.5(b) will be conducted in Chicago, Illinois by one neutral arbitrator operating and appointed from the JAMS panel of neutrals in accordance with the provisions of JAMS Streamlined Arbitration Rules and Procedures in effect at the time the demand for arbitration is filed. The arbitrator shall have the authority to award any remedy or relief that a court of competent jurisdiction could order or grant, including the issuance of an injunction; provided, however, that the arbitration award shall not include factual findings or conclusions of law and no punitive damages shall be awarded. The fees and expenses of such arbitration shall be borne by the non-prevailing Party, as determined by such arbitration. The provisions of this Section 5.5(b) with respect to the arbitration conducted pursuant to this Section 5.5(b) before JAMS may be enforced by any court of competent jurisdiction, and the Parties seeking enforcement shall be entitled to an award of all costs, fees and expenses, including attorneys’ fees, to be paid by the Party against whom enforcement is ordered. The Parties agree that this Section 5.5(b) has been included to rapidly and inexpensively resolve any disputes between them with respect to the matters described herein, and that this Section 5.5(b) shall be grounds for dismissal of any court action commenced by any Party with respect to a dispute arising out of such matters, in the event Cumberland elects to compel arbitration. The Parties shall maintain the confidential nature of the arbitration proceeding and the award, including the hearing, except as may be necessary to prepare for or conduct the arbitration hearing on the merits, or except as may be necessary in connection with a court application for a preliminary remedy, a judicial challenge to an award or its enforcement, or unless otherwise required by Applicable Law.
(c) Each Party irrevocably and unconditionally hereby submits to the personal jurisdiction of such courts described in Section 5.5(a) and/or JAMS arbitration described in Section 5.5(b) and waives any objection such Party may now or hereafter have to venue or that such courts and/or JAMS arbitration are inconvenient forums.
Section 5.6 Confidentiality. The Parties hereby agree to not disclose, and to otherwise keep confidential, the terms of this Agreement, the transactions contemplated hereby and any non-public information provided by the other Party in connection with the Parties’ respective onboarding procedures or periodic KYC/AML requests (“Confidential Information”). Notwithstanding the foregoing, each Party may disclose Confidential Information to its Representatives, provided that such Party shall (a) inform such Representatives of the confidential nature of the Confidential Information, (b) be responsible for any breach of this Section 5.6 by such Representatives, and (c) take such action, legal or otherwise, as may be reasonably necessary to cause them to comply with the terms and conditions of this Section 5.6. The term “Representative,” when used in reference to a Party, shall mean such Party’s directors, officers, members, employees, agents, Affiliates, professional advisers, independent (sub)contractors and financial institutions providing services to such Party in connection with any applicable anti-money laundering or compliance requirements. Notwithstanding the confidentiality obligations set forth in this Section 5.6, each Party may disclose Confidential Information in response to a request for information or documents from a regulatory, law enforcement, or other government agency or office; in response to legal process (by interrogatories, requests for information or documents, subpoena, civil investigative demand or similar process); or if advised by legal counsel that such disclosure is required or compelled by Applicable Law. In the event of such a disclosure, the disclosing Party will use reasonable efforts to preserve the confidentiality of such information, including, if applicable and appropriate, requesting that such information be afforded confidential treatment pursuant to a protective order and/or be exempt from disclosure from the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552, or similar laws, rules, or regulations. Each Party hereby further agrees to not make any public announcement, public statement or advertisement relating to the relationship of the Parties or the fact that the Parties engaged in any transaction without the prior written consent of the other Party. The obligations set forth in this Section 5.6 shall survive the termination or expiration of this Agreement.
Section 5.7 Entire Agreement. This Agreement and each Completed Trade executed on or after the date hereof contain the entire agreement among the Parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede all prior agreements and understandings, written or oral, among the Parties with respect thereto. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, this Agreement supersedes and replaces in its entirety any Master Purchase Agreement (or similar purchase agreement relating to the purchase and sale of cryptoassets) previously entered into between the Parties.
Section 5.8 Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which when so executed and delivered shall be deemed to be an original, but all such counterparts taken together shall constitute one and the same binding and enforceable instrument. This Agreement may be executed via electronic signature (including, without limitation, via DocuSign) and delivered by email, portable document format (PDF) or other form of electronic transmission. The Parties agree that the method of electronic signature and delivery described herein is reliable and appropriate, and will amount to the legal equivalent of the Party’s handwritten signature.
Section 5.9 Notices, Consents, etc.
(a) Any notices, consents or other communications required or permitted to be sent or given hereunder by either of the Parties shall in every case be in writing and shall be deemed properly served if (i) delivered personally, (ii) sent by registered or certified mail, in all such cases with first class postage prepaid, return receipt requested, (iii) delivered by a recognized overnight courier service or (iv) sent via email, to the Parties, at the addresses as set forth below or at such other addresses as may be furnished in writing.
If to Cumberland, to:
Cumberland DRW LLC
540 West Madison Street, Suite 2500
Chicago, Illinois 60661
Attention: General Counsel
Email: GeneralCounsel@cumberland.io
If to Counterparty, to:
The address for notices set forth by Counterparty on the cover page of this Master Purchase Agreement executed by Counterparty.
(b) Date of service of such notice shall be (i) the date such notice is personally delivered or sent by email, (ii) three (3) Business Days after the date of mailing if sent by certified or registered mail, or (iii) one (1) Business Day after date of delivery to the overnight courier if sent by overnight courier.
Section 5.10 Authorized Persons. If Counterparty is not a natural person, Counterparty agrees that Cumberland may rely on, and Counterparty shall be bound by, any notice, Trade Request or other communication provided by any person that Cumberland reasonably believes is authorized by Counterparty to provide such notice, Trade Request or other communication, whether or not such person has actual authority to do so on behalf of Counterparty.
Section 5.11 No Third-Party Beneficiary. The terms and provisions of this Agreement are intended solely for the benefit of each Party and their respective successors or permitted assigns, and it is not the intention of the Parties to confer third-party beneficiary rights upon any other Person.
ADDENDUM A to APPENDIX I
ELECTRONIC ACCESS AND TRADING
1. Trading System. Cumberland may provide Counterparty online access to the Trading System. Any access to and use of the Trading System will be subject to the terms of this Addendum.
2. Quoting and Trading Functionalities. Cumberland may make available to Counterparty one or more of the following quoting and trading functionalities through the Trading System (each, a “Functionality”):
| (a) | Static Request for Quote Functionality: Pursuant to this functionality, Cumberland may, upon request, provide quotes to Counterparty for a specific transaction. |
| (b) | Request for Stream Functionality: Pursuant to this functionality, Cumberland may, upon request, stream quotes to Counterparty for a specified quantity of a specified cryptoasset. |
| (c) | Continual Stream Functionality: Pursuant to this functionality, Cumberland may stream quotes to Counterparty for various specified quantities of specified cryptoassets. |
3. Use of Quoting and Trading Functionalities. If Cumberland makes a Functionality available to Counterparty, the procedures set forth below shall apply in lieu of the procedures set forth in Section 2.1 of Appendix I of the Agreement:
| (a) | Static Request for Quote. The following procedures shall apply to the Static Request for Quote Functionality: |
| (i) | Counterparty may submit, through the Trading System, a request for a quote setting forth the price at which Cumberland is willing to purchase or sell a specified quantity of a specified cryptoasset which price may be requested in a fiat currency or another cryptoasset (each such request, an “RFQ”). |
| (ii) | Upon receipt of an RFQ, Cumberland may provide to Counterparty, through the Trading System, the price at which it is willing to purchase or sell (as the case may be) the specified quantity of such cryptoasset (each, a “Static Quote”). |
| (iii) | Upon receipt of a Static Quote, Counterparty may submit to Cumberland, through the Trading System, a request to purchase or sell the specified cryptoasset on the terms set forth in the Static Quote (a “Static Trade Request”); provided, however, that Cumberland may modify or withdraw the Static Quote at any time prior to processing a Static Trade Request from Counterparty. |
| (iv) | If the Static Quote has not been modified or withdrawn, Cumberland will accept such Static Trade Request through the Trading System and a binding transaction will be deemed to have been executed at the time of such acceptance on the terms set forth in such Static Quote. |
| (b) | Request for Stream. The following procedures shall apply to the Request for Stream Functionality: |
| (i) | Counterparty may submit, through the Trading System, a request to receive a stream of quotes setting forth the prices at which Cumberland is willing to purchase or sell a specified quantity of a specified cryptoasset which prices may be denominated in a fiat currency or another cryptoasset (each such request, an “RFS”). |
| (ii) | Upon receipt of an RFS, Cumberland may provide to Counterparty, through the Trading System, a stream of quotes, setting forth the prices at which it is willing to purchase or sell (as the case may be) a specified quantity of such cryptoasset (each, a “Streaming Quote”). |
| (iii) | Upon receipt of Streaming Quotes, Counterparty may submit to Cumberland, through the Trading System, a request to purchase or sell the specified cryptoasset on the terms set forth in a Streaming Quote (a “Streaming Trade Request”); provided, however, that Cumberland may modify or withdraw a Streaming Quote at any time prior to processing a Streaming Trade Request from Counterparty. |
| (iv) | If the Streaming Quote has not been modified or withdrawn, Cumberland will accept such Streaming Trade Request through the Trading System and a binding transaction will be deemed to have been executed at the time of such acceptance on the terms set forth in such Streaming Quote. |
| (c) | Continual Stream. The following procedures shall apply to the Continual Stream Functionality: |
| (i) | Cumberland may provide to Counterparty, through the Trading System, a continual stream of prices (which may be denominated in a fiat currency or another cryptoasset) at which it is willing to purchase or sell a specified quantity of a specified cryptoasset (each, a “CSF Quote”). |
| (ii) | Upon the receipt of CSF Quotes, Counterparty may submit to Cumberland, through the Trading System, a request to purchase or sell the specified cryptoasset on the terms set forth in one of the CSF Quotes (a “CSF Trade Request”); provided, however, that Cumberland may modify or withdraw a CSF Quote at any time prior to processing a CSF Trade Request from Counterparty. |
| (iii) | If the CSF Quote has not been modified or withdrawn, Cumberland will accept such CSF Trade Request through the Trading System and a binding transaction will be deemed to have been executed at the time of such acceptance on the terms set forth in such CSF Quote. |
4. Executed Transactions. If Cumberland accepts a Static Trade Request, Streaming Trade Request or CSF Trade Request (collectively, “Trade Requests”) through the Trading System, the resulting transaction (each, a “Transaction”) will be deemed a Completed Trade.
5. License. Cumberland hereby grants Counterparty, for the term of this Addendum, a limited, non-exclusive, revocable, non-transferable and non-sublicenseable license to use (and allow its Authorized Users to use) the Trading System pursuant to the terms of this Addendum. Cumberland or its licensors retain all rights, title and interest in and to the Trading System, including all source code, object code, data, information, copyrights, trademarks, patents, inventions and trade secrets embodied therein, and all other rights not expressly granted to Counterparty hereunder. Nothing in this Addendum constitutes a waiver of any of Cumberland’s rights under the intellectual property laws of the United States or any other jurisdiction or under any other federal, state, or foreign laws.
6. Security and Access. Counterparty may access the Trading Services only through use of one or more passwords, security devices or other access methods as provided by Cumberland (collectively, “Access Methods”). Counterparty is solely responsible for ensuring that Counterparty’s Access Methods are known to and used by only those users that Counterparty authorizes (“Authorized Users”). Counterparty agrees to comply with any reasonable procedures established by Cumberland for the pre-approval and authorization of Authorized Users. Counterparty acknowledges that Cumberland, in its sole discretion, may deny access to the Trading Services to any user of Counterparty’s Access Methods. Counterparty will be (i) solely responsible for all acts or omissions of any person using the Trading Services through Counterparty’s Access Methods, (ii) solely responsible for any losses, damages or costs that Counterparty may incur as a result of errors made by, or the failure of, the software or equipment that Counterparty or any Authorized Users use to access the Trading Services, and (iii) without limitation of the foregoing or any other provision of this Addendum, bound by the terms of any and all Transactions executed and/or Trade Requests accepted through the Trading System using Counterparty’s Access Methods, in each case unless due to Cumberland’s willful misconduct. All transmissions generated by use of Counterparty’s Access Methods will be deemed to be authorized by Counterparty and made by an Authorized User whether or not Cumberland acknowledges receipt of such transmission and Cumberland shall be entitled to act in reliance on such deemed authorization, unless due to Cumberland’s willful misconduct. If any of Counterparty’s Access Methods have been modified, lost, stolen or compromised, Counterparty will promptly notify Cumberland. Upon receipt of this notice, such Access Methods will be cancelled or suspended as soon as is reasonably practicable, but Counterparty is responsible for any actions taken through the use of such Access Methods prior to such cancellation. Counterparty will immediately report any apparent malfunction or breach of security of which Counterparty becomes aware or experiences with the Trading Services. In the event of a dispute, Cumberland’s communications and transactions log of all Static Quotes, Streaming Quotes and CSF Quotes (each, a “Cumberland Quote”), Transactions and communications regarding Transactions by Counterparty or its Authorized Users or their Access Methods (the “Transactions Log”) will be conclusive evidence of the communications contained in them. Counterparty agrees not to contest the validity or enforceability of the Transactions Log in any legal proceedings between the Parties.
7. Use of the Trading System.
| (a) | Cumberland may at any time, in its sole discretion, restrict the number of Authorized Users and impose restrictions, limits or parameters on RFQs, RFSs, CFSs and Trade Requests. Cumberland maintains filters to prevent Trade Requests that do not comply with financial, operational and risk control requirements. These pre-trade restrictions, limits and parameters may delay or prevent Trade Requests from being submitted, require Cumberland to not respond to and/or confirm Trade Requests, or result in delays in the execution of Transactions. Such restrictions, limits and parameters may be amended, increased, decreased, removed or added to by Cumberland in its sole discretion, upon notice to Counterparty, if practicable, and may include (without limitation): (i) controls over maximum Trade Request sizes; (ii) controls over Cumberland’s total exposure to Counterparty; (iii) controls over Trade Requests and/or Transactions that may indicate duplicative or clearly erroneous Trade Requests and/or Transactions; or (iv) any other restrictions, limits, parameters or controls that Cumberland may be required to implement in accordance with applicable regulations or its internal policies and procedures. Counterparty agrees to abide by such restrictions and to be responsible for any Trade Request and/or Transaction that violates such restrictions or exceeds such limits. Even if a Trade Request is within the restrictions, limits and parameters set by Cumberland, Cumberland has sole discretion to not respond to and/or confirm such Trade Request. |
| (b) | Cumberland has no responsibility for the transmission of Trade Requests that are inaccurate or not received by Cumberland, and Transactions may be executed on the terms actually received by Cumberland. |
| (c) | Counterparty may not make the Trading System available in any form to any person or entity without the prior written consent of Cumberland, except as permitted under this Addendum. Counterparty may not rent, sublicense, sell or lease, directly or indirectly, the Trading System or any portion thereof to any third party, and may not alter, modify, decompile, disassemble, or reverse engineer the Trading System. Any attempt to use, copy, or convey the Trading System in a manner contrary to the terms of this Addendum or in competition with Cumberland or in derogation of Cumberland’s proprietary rights, whether such rights are stated herein or determined by law or otherwise, will result in this Addendum being automatically terminated and Cumberland shall have all rights and remedies available to it under Applicable Law, including without limitation, the right to immediate injunctive relief. Counterparty hereby acknowledges that all other remedies are inadequate. |
| (d) | Counterparty acknowledges that Transactions will be executed at the price in the Cumberland Quote, which may be different from the price at which the cryptoasset is trading in other markets or with other counterparties when the Transaction is completed. |
| (e) | The Trading System may malfunction or become temporarily unavailable due to a computer malfunction or network congestion or some other reason. Cumberland does not guarantee that the Trading System will be available at all times, and it is not responsible for losses, damages or costs incurred or suffered by Counterparty as a result of the unavailability or malfunction of the Trading System. |
| (f) | Regardless of any other provision of this Addendum, Cumberland has the right to suspend or terminate (at any time, with or without cause or prior notice) all or any part of the Trading System, or Counterparty’s access thereto, for any reason, including but not limited to, changing the features or functionality of the Trading System, or changing the limits on the trading Counterparty may conduct through the Trading System, all without any liability to Counterparty. Counterparty understands it can have no expectation of any use or continued use of the Trading System. |
8. Compliance with Applicable Law. Counterparty represents and warrants, which representation and warranty will be deemed repeated each time Counterparty uses the Trading System, that its use of the Trading System will comply with Applicable Law.
9. Data. With respect to any Cumberland Quote, market data or other data or information that Cumberland provides to Counterparty in connection with Counterparty’s use of the Trading System, Counterparty agrees that (i) Cumberland is not responsible or liable if any such Cumberland Quote, data or information is inaccurate or incomplete in any respect; (ii) Cumberland is not responsible or liable for any actions that Counterparty takes or does not take based on such Cumberland Quote, data or information; and (iii) Counterparty will use such Cumberland Quote, data or information solely for the purposes set forth in this Addendum and in compliance with Applicable Law.
10. Other Activities. Cumberland may engage in trading in the markets reflected through the Trading System for Cumberland’s proprietary accounts, which could affect the value or terms of Transactions and Cumberland may enter into transactions at prices different from the prices reflected to Counterparty through the Trading Services.
11. Monitoring. Cumberland reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to monitor all uses of the Trading System to ensure compliance with this Addendum and the policies and procedures of Cumberland and its affiliates in effect from time to time. Counterparty acknowledges and agrees that Cumberland and its affiliates have the right to monitor, record and investigate all uses of the Trading System by Counterparty.
12. Limitation of Liability; No Warranty.
| (a) | CUMBERLAND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS LIABILITY FOR ANY DELAY IN EXECUTION OR THE FAILURE TO EXECUTE ANY TRANSACTION MADE THROUGH USE OF THE TRADING SYSTEM. CUMBERLAND FURTHER EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS LIABILITY FOR COUNTERPARTY’S INABILITY TO ENTER, EXECUTE OR CANCEL ALL OR PART OF ANY TRANSACTION EFFECTED THROUGH USE OF THE TRADING SYSTEM. COUNTERPARTY ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT CUMBERLAND IS NOT A GUARANTOR OF ANY INVESTMENT MADE HEREUNDER. IN NO EVENT WILL CUMBERLAND BE LIABLE TO COUNTERPARTY OR ANY OTHER PARTY FOR ANY LOSSES, LIABILITIES, DAMAGES, FEES OR EXPENSES OF COUNTERPARTY ARISING FROM THIS ADDENDUM, THE TRADING SYSTEM OR ANY QUOTES OR OTHER INFORMATION PROVIDED THROUGH THE TRADING SYSTEM, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO DIRECT DAMAGES, LOST PROFITS, TRADING LOSSES, LOSS OF USE, INTERRUPTION OF BUSINESS, LOSS OF DATA, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF OPPORTUNITY, LOSS OF INVESTMENTS OR EXPENDITURES OR ANY OTHER SUCH DAMAGES, ANY SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER IN TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE, WHETHER OR NOT CUMBERLAND HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. COUNTERPARTY ACKNOWLEDGES THAT DETRIMENTAL FINANCIAL RESULTS MAY OCCUR THROUGH USE OF THE TRADING SYSTEM AND ACCEPTS ALL FINANCIAL CONSEQUENCES RESULTING FROM SUCH USE. THE SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY OF COUNTERPARTY FOR ANY BREACH OF THIS ADDENDUM BY CUMBERLAND SHALL BE TERMINATION OF THIS ADDENDUM BY WRITTEN NOTICE TO CUMBERLAND (PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT THIS SECTION 12 SHALL SURVIVE ANY SUCH TERMINATION). |
| (b) | THE TRADING SYSTEM IS LICENSED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, AND CUMBERLAND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMS ALL EXPRESS AND IMPLIED WARRANTIES REGARDING THE TRADING SYSTEM, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, (A) THE WARRANTIES THAT IT IS FREE OF DEFECTS, MERCHANTABLE, FIT FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGING, (B) THAT THE TRADING SYSTEM WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR FREE OR FREE OF HARMFUL COMPONENTS, AND (C) THAT ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED BY COUNTERPARTY WILL BE SECURE AND NOT LOST OR DAMAGED. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE TRADING SYSTEM IS BORNE BY COUNTERPARTY. THIS DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY CONSTITUTES AN ESSENTIAL PART OF THIS ADDENDUM. NO USE OF THE TRADING SYSTEM IS AUTHORIZED HEREUNDER EXCEPT AS PERMITTED UNDER THIS ADDENDUM. |
APPENDIX
II
SETTLEMENT TERMS
The Parties shall settle each Completed Trade in accordance with the following settlement terms:
(a) By no later than the Counterparty Delivery Time (i) if Counterparty is purchasing the Counterparty Purchased Cryptoassets from Cumberland, then Counterparty shall transfer, or cause to be transferred, the Counterparty Purchase Price to Cumberland by transfer of immediately available funds from the Counterparty Bank Account to the account designated by Cumberland or cryptoassets on the applicable Cryptoasset Network from the applicable Counterparty Wallet to the applicable Cumberland Wallet or (ii) if Cumberland is purchasing the Cumberland Purchased Cryptoassets from Counterparty, then Counterparty shall deliver, or cause to be delivered, the Cumberland Purchased Cryptoassets to Cumberland by transfer of immediately available cryptoassets on the applicable Cryptoasset Network from the applicable Counterparty Wallet to the applicable Cumberland Wallet. Counterparty agrees and acknowledges that with respect to any and all wire transfers from Counterparty or on behalf of Counterparty to Cumberland, the name on the originating account must match exactly the Counterparty name as provided by Counterparty to Cumberland and if it does not, Cumberland reserves the right to reject the wire transfer.
(b) As promptly as is reasonably practicable following receipt of the Counterparty Purchase Price or receipt of the Cumberland Purchased Cryptoassets by Cumberland, (i) if Counterparty is purchasing the Counterparty Purchased Cryptoassets from Cumberland, then Cumberland shall deliver, or cause to be delivered, the Counterparty Purchased Cryptoassets to Counterparty by transfer of cryptoassets on the applicable Cryptoasset Network to the applicable Counterparty Wallet or (ii) if Cumberland is purchasing the Cumberland Purchased Cryptoassets from Counterparty, then Cumberland shall transfer or cause to be transferred, the Cumberland Purchase Price to Counterparty by transfer of immediately available funds to the Counterparty Bank Account or cryptoassets on the applicable Cryptoasset Network to the applicable Counterparty Wallet.
(c) To the extent that the Parties have payment and delivery obligations with respect to multiple Completed Trades in the same cryptoasset, upon request by Counterparty, Cumberland may, in its sole discretion, net such Completed Trades executed during a Net Settlement Period against each other as follows: (i) any Cumberland Purchased Cryptoassets that Counterparty is required to deliver will be netted against any Counterparty Purchased Cryptoassets that Cumberland is required to deliver; (ii) any Counterparty Purchase Price that Counterparty is required to pay will be netted against any Cumberland Purchase Price that Cumberland is required to pay; and (iii) a net number of units of the relevant cryptoasset will be delivered by one Party against a net purchase price to be paid by the other Party. At the completion of the Net Settlement Period, Cumberland shall provide Counterparty with a summary (the “Net Settlement Summary”) of the Completed Trades executed during the Net Settlement Period, which shall set forth the net number of units of the relevant cryptoasset to be delivered by one Party and the net purchase price to be paid by the other Party.
(d) Each Party hereby agrees that should it receive any cryptoassets in error from the other Party – for example, receipt of more cryptoassets than were due or receipt of cryptoassets intended for a third party – such Party shall return such cryptoassets to the other Party’s cryptoasset wallet (either the Counterparty Wallet or the Cumberland Wallet, as applicable) as soon as is reasonably practicable, and in no event more than twenty-four hours after receipt.
(e) In addition to the capitalized terms defined elsewhere in the Agreement, capitalized terms in this Appendix II shall have the following meanings:
“Counterparty Bank” shall mean the bank identified by Counterparty as part of Cumberland’s onboarding procedures, or such other bank as the Parties may mutually agree.
“Counterparty Bank Account” shall mean the bank account in Counterparty’s name at the Counterparty Bank identified by Counterparty as part of Cumberland’s onboarding procedures, or such other bank account as the Parties may mutually agree.
“Counterparty Delivery Time” shall mean: (i) if the Completed Trade is a spot trade, is not subject to net settlement pursuant to clause (c) above, and Counterparty is delivering cryptoassets, then twenty four (24) hours after the Time of Acceptance; (ii) if the Completed Trade is a spot trade, is not subject to net settlement pursuant to clause (c) above, Counterparty is delivering fiat currency, and the Time of Acceptance occurs before 2:00 p.m. Local Time on a Local Business Day, then 5:00 p.m. Local Time on the same day; (iii) if the Completed Trade is a spot trade, is not subject to net settlement pursuant to clause (c) above, Counterparty is delivering fiat currency, and the Time of Acceptance occurs at or after 2:00 p.m. Local Time on a Local Business Day or on a day that is not a Local Business Day, then 2:00 p.m. Local Time on the following Local Business Day; (iv) if the Completed Trade is a forward trade, is not subject to net settlement pursuant to clause (c) above, then 2:00 p.m. Central Time on the day specified in the applicable Cumberland Quote, or at such other time mutually agreed upon by the Parties; and (v) for all Completed Trades executed during a Net Settlement Period, as promptly as is reasonably practicable following the delivery of the Net Settlement Summary to Counterparty, but in no event later than twelve (12) hours after such delivery (or such later time as Cumberland may agree to in writing in its sole discretion).
“Cryptoasset Network” shall mean the peer-to-peer computer network that governs the transfer of the applicable cryptoassets.
“Local Business Day” shall mean a day other than Saturday or Sunday on which the Counterparty Bank is open for business.
“Local Time” shall mean the time in the city where the Counterparty Bank is located, as specified in the information previously delivered by Counterparty to Cumberland.
“Net Settlement Period” shall mean the period of time, as agreed upon by the Parties, during which Completed Trades that are executed between the Parties, shall be settled on a net basis in accordance with clause (c) above.
“Settlement Date” shall mean, with respect to a Completed Trade, the date upon which the transaction settles, which will be the same day that Cumberland delivers to Counterparty the Counterparty Purchased Cryptoassets or the Cumberland Purchase Price, as applicable, pursuant to clause (b) above.
APPENDIX
III
SUPPLEMENTAL TERMS
None
ELECTRONIC RECORD AND SIGNATURE DISCLOSURE
From time to time, HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA. (we, us or Company) may be required by law to provide to you certain written notices or disclosures. Described below are the terms and conditions for providing to you such notices and disclosures electronically through the DocuSign system. Please read the information below carefully and thoroughly, and if you can access this information electronically to your satisfaction and agree to this Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure (ERSD), please confirm your agreement by selecting the check-box next to ‘I agree to use electronic records and signatures’ before clicking ‘CONTINUE’ within the DocuSign system.
Getting paper copies
At any time, you may request from us a paper copy of any record provided or made available electronically to you by us. You will have the ability to download and print documents we send to you through the DocuSign system during and immediately after the signing session and, if you elect to create a DocuSign account, you may access the documents for a limited period of time (usually 30 days) after such documents are first sent to you. After such time, if you wish for us to send you paper copies of any such documents from our office to you, you will be charged a $0.00 per-page fee. You may request delivery of such paper copies from us by following the procedure described below.
Withdrawing your consent
If you decide to receive notices and disclosures from us electronically, you may at any time change your mind and tell us that thereafter you want to receive required notices and disclosures only in paper format. How you must inform us of your decision to receive future notices and disclosure in paper format and withdraw your consent to receive notices and disclosures electronically is described below.
Consequences of changing your mind
If you elect to receive required notices and disclosures only in paper format, it will slow the speed at which we can complete certain steps in transactions with you and delivering services to you because we will need first to send the required notices or disclosures to you in paper format, and then wait until we receive back from you your acknowledgment of your receipt of such paper notices or disclosures. Further, you will no longer be able to use the DocuSign system to receive required notices and consents electronically from us or to sign electronically documents from us.
All notices and disclosures will be sent to you electronically
Unless you tell us otherwise in accordance with the procedures described herein, we will provide electronically to you through the DocuSign system all required notices, disclosures, authorizations, acknowledgements, and other documents that are required to be provided or made available to you during the course of our relationship with you. To reduce the chance of you inadvertently not receiving any notice or disclosure, we prefer to provide all of the required notices and disclosures to you by the same method and to the same address that you have given us. Thus, you can receive all the disclosures and notices electronically or in paper format through the paper mail delivery system. If you do not agree with this process, please let us know as described below. Please also see the paragraph immediately above that describes the consequences of your electing not to receive delivery of the notices and disclosures electronically from us.
How to contact HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA.:
You may contact us to let us know of your changes as to how we may contact you electronically, to request paper copies of certain information from us, and to withdraw your prior consent to receive notices and disclosures electronically as follows:
To contact us by email send messages to: docusign@hashdex.com
To advise HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA. of your new email address
To let us know of a change in your email address where we should send notices and disclosures electronically to you, you must send an email message to us at docusign@hashdex.com and in the body of such request you must state: your previous email address, your new email address. We do not require any other information from you to change your email address.
If you created a DocuSign account, you may update it with your new email address through your account preferences.
To request paper copies from HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA.
To request delivery from us of paper copies of the notices and disclosures previously provided by us to you electronically, you must send us an email to docusign@hashdex.com and in the body of such request you must state your email address, full name, mailing address, and telephone number. We will bill you for any fees at that time, if any.
To withdraw your consent with HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA.
To inform us that you no longer wish to receive future notices and disclosures in electronic format you may:
i. decline to sign a document from within your signing session, and on the subsequent page, select the check-box indicating you wish to withdraw your consent, or you may;
ii. send us an email to docusign@hashdex.com and in the body of such request you must state your email, full name, mailing address, and telephone number. We do not need any other information from you to withdraw consent.. The consequences of your withdrawing consent for online documents will be that transactions may take a longer time to process..
Required hardware and software
The minimum system requirements for using the DocuSign system may change over time. The current system requirements are found here: https://support.docusign.com/guides/signer-guide- signing-system-requirements.
Acknowledging your access and consent to receive and sign documents electronically
To confirm to us that you can access this information electronically, which will be similar to other electronic notices and disclosures that we will provide to you, please confirm that you have read this ERSD, and (i) that you are able to print on paper or electronically save this ERSD for your future reference and access; or (ii) that you are able to email this ERSD to an email address where you will be able to print on paper or save it for your future reference and access. Further, if you consent to receiving notices and disclosures exclusively in electronic format as described herein, then select the check-box next to ‘I agree to use electronic records and signatures’ before clicking ‘CONTINUE’ within the DocuSign system.
By selecting the check-box next to ‘I agree to use electronic records and signatures’, you confirm that:
| ● | You can access and read this Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure; and |
| ● | You can print on paper this Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure, or save or send this Electronic Record and Disclosure to a location where you can print it, for future reference and access; and |
| ● | Until or unless you notify HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA. as described above, you consent to receive exclusively through electronic means all notices, disclosures, authorizations, acknowledgements, and other documents that are required to be provided or made available to you by HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA. during the course of your relationship with HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA.. |
Exhibit 10.4
FLOWDESK
Company Number: 883 604 647 /VAT FR87 883604647
Registration
Number: E2021-019
231 Rue Saint-Honoré, 75001 Paris, France
Special Terms and Conditions
These special terms and conditions (“Special Terms and Conditions”) are made on 24 July 2025 (“Contract Effective Date”) and
BETWEEN:
FLOWDESK a company incorporated in France under company number 883 604 647 and whose registered office is located at 231 rue Saint honoré, 75001 Paris, France. Flowdesk is registered as a Digital Assets Service Provider (“DASP”) with the French Autorité des Marchés Financiers, under number E2021-019. Flowdesk has authorization to provide the following services in France (each as defined in Article L. 54-10-2 of the Monetary and Financial Code): (i) custody of Digital Assets on behalf of a third party; (ii) the service of buying or selling Digital Assets for legal tender; (iii) the service of exchanging Digital Assets for other Digital Assets.
— AND —
Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF a company incorporated in the state of Delaware, registered under the number 4231230, and whose registered office is located at CSC Delaware Trust Company, 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, DE 19808, US.
(the “Counterparty”).
These Special Terms and Conditions are part of the General Terms and Conditions and should be read and interpreted in conjunction with the OTC Trade Services Terms and Flowdesk Policies, as updated from time to time and available on Flowdesk’s website : https://www.flowdesk.co/eula and shall incorporate the by reference. The Special Terms and Conditions effective between the Parties and which will regulate all access and use of the Services. By signing these Special Terms and Conditions the Counterparty is deemed to have accepted the General Terms and Conditions and OTC Trade Service Terms.
Capitalized terms not expressly defined herein will have the meaning ascribed to them in the General Terms and Conditions.
In the event of any inconsistency between the General Terms and Conditions and these Special Terms and Conditions, the latter will prevail, unless agreed otherwise in writing between the Parties.
FLOWDESK - OTC - MASTER SERVICES AGREEMENT - Special Terms and Conditions
General Terms & Conditions : https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1w-frVuIjIGgbRmDQNtesyXHjlB4K_naZ
Service Terms : https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/15iJkOok1EdBKtho762j33pIEyvf7DtN1
Information contained in this document is proprietary and confidential. Unauthorized circulation or reproduction of this document is not permitted and may be cause for legal action.
Flowdesk’s compliance
Flowdesk is registered with the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (“AMF”) as a Digital Assets Services Provider to provide (i) custody of Digital Assets on behalf of a third party; (ii) the service of buying or selling Digital Assets for legal tender; and (iii) the service of exchanging Digital Assets for other Digital Assets.
French Authorities supervise the compliance of Flowdesk’s activities with AML-CFT rules.
Prepayment and Settlement
The Counterparty acknowledges and agrees that the purchase of digital assets might be subject to a prepayment condition.
In such a case, the Counterparty shall remit the full agreed-upon purchase amount to Flowdesk prior to the execution of the transaction. Upon receipt of the prepayment, the seller shall proceed with the transfer of the assets to the Counterparty. Failure to fulfill the prepayment requirement within the stipulated time frame may result in the cancellation of the transaction at the Flowdesk’s discretion.
The parties acknowledge that the prepayment is an essential and binding prerequisite for the successful completion of applicable transactions. Flowdesk is obligated to withhold the delivery of digital currency until the corresponding fiat currency is confirmed to be in Flowdesk’s designated bank account or digital currency is deliver to Flowdesk’s designated wallet address. Flowdesk will not be held responsible for any delays in the delivery of digital currency and shall bear no liability for any subsequent price fluctuations following the conclusion of a transaction. Flowdesk is committed to delivering the digital currency to the specified wallet address provided by the Counterparty and shall not assume any responsibility for errors made by the Counterparty in relation to the provided wallet address.
PLEASE NOTE THAT ONCE EXECUTED TRANSACTIONS ARE BINDING AND MAY NOT BE UNDONE
[SIGNATURES PAGE FOLLOWS]
FLOWDESK - OTC - MASTER SERVICES AGREEMENT - Special Terms and Conditions
General Terms & Conditions : https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1w-frVuIjIGgbRmDQNtesyXHjlB4K_naZ
Service Terms : https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/15iJkOok1EdBKtho762j33pIEyvf7DtN1
Information contained in this document is proprietary and confidential. Unauthorized circulation or reproduction of this document is not permitted and may be cause for legal action.
Electronic Signature
This Agreement is executed on the date hereof by each of the Parties using an Advanced Electronic Signature (AES) process implemented by a third party service provider, DocuSign as set out in the General Terms and Conditions.
Signed by duly authorised representatives of the Parties.
| Flowdesk: | Counterparty | |
| /s/ Thomas Jeulin | /s/ Bruno Sousa | |
| Name: Thomas Jeulin | Name: Bruno Sousa | |
| Title: Global Head of Sales | Title: Authorized signatory |
FLOWDESK - OTC - MASTER SERVICES AGREEMENT - Special Terms and Conditions
General Terms & Conditions : https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1w-frVuIjIGgbRmDQNtesyXHjlB4K_naZ
Service Terms : https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/15iJkOok1EdBKtho762j33pIEyvf7DtN1
Information contained in this document is proprietary and confidential. Unauthorized circulation or reproduction of this document is not permitted and may be cause for legal action.
Exhibit 10.5
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LETTER OF ADHERENCE
This Letter of Adherence (the “Letter”) is entered into as of August 27, 2025 (the “Effective Date”) by and between Enigma Securities Limited, a private limited company incorporated in England and Wales (Company No. 11114339), with its registered office at 30 Panton Street, London SW1Y 4AJ (“Enigma”); and Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF a company incorporated in the state of Delaware, registered under the number 4231230, and whose registered office is located at CSC Delaware Trust Company, 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, DE 19808, US (the “Counterparty”).
The Counterparty hereby acknowledges that it has received, read, and agrees to be fully bound by the terms and conditions set forth in the Enigma Securities Limited Terms of Business (the “Terms”), a copy of which is attached to this Letter as Supplement A.
The Counterparty agrees that the Terms shall govern all over-the-counter crypto-asset trading transactions and any related services (the “Services”) provided by Enigma to the Counterparty from the date of this Letter.
This Letter and the attached Terms constitute the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the Services. The Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of England and Wales.
| /s/ Nehal Chudasama | /s/ Bruno Ramos de Sousa | |||
| ENIGMA | COUNTERPARTY | |||
| Name: | Nehal Chudasama | Name: | Bruno Ramos de Sousa | |
| Title: | Mr | Title: | Director of the Trust’s Sponsor | |
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SUPPLEMENT A – ENIGMA SECURITIES LIMITED TERMS OF BUSINESS
Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
| 1. | Acceptance of the Terms |
1.1 These terms of use (the “Terms”) set out the terms and conditions under which you (“You” or “Your” as appropriate) can trade cryptocurrencies, for example Bitcoin or Ethereum (“Crypto” or “Cryptocurrency”) using Enigma Securities Limited (the “Service”). Enigma Securities Limited (“Us”, “We” or “Enigma” as appropriate) is an FCA registered cryptoasset business (FRN: 930442). It is also an Appointed Representative of Makor Securities London Limited which is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN: 625054). Enigma Securities Limited is a private limited company with registered office 30 Panton Street, London SW1Y 4AJ (Company No: 11114339).
1.2 . You acknowledge and agree that by engaging with Enigma to execute transactions or generally using the Service in any way, You will be deemed to have accepted these Terms. You understand that each order submitted to Enigma (whether by voice broking, email or via any other electronic interface that We may provide and/or accept) may result in Your entry into one or more binding crypto transactions (a “Transaction”). You assume full financial and performance responsibility for all such Transactions created as a result of the process set out in these Terms.
| https://enigma-securities.io/tob/enigma-securities-ltd |
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
| 2. | Amendment to the Terms |
Unless We consider any amendment to be a material change to the Terms (in which case we will provide You with not less than 7 (seven) days’ prior written notice, We reserve the right to amend the Terms at any time without prior notice to You. All changes shall take effect immediately and an updated version of the Terms shall be published on Our website. If You do not agree to any amendment, then You should stop using the Service immediately. Any such changes shall not affect unsettled and/or outstanding Transactions, unless arising out of or in connection with matters related to our obligations regarding compliance, risk, illegality, or pursuant to an order from a regulatory or judicial authority with competent jurisdiction.
| 3. | Risks |
3.1. Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are not currently classified as a type of regulated financial instrument under the current UK or European regulatory frameworks (including MiFID II). This means that the Service and Related Services are not governed by the same rules and regulations that apply to similar services relating to other products, for example, You will not therefore benefit from the statutory client money protections available to clients receiving regulated investment services, including access to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme and the Financial Ombudsman for dispute resolution. The FCA client money regime, as set out in the FCA’s Client Asset Sourcebook, will also not apply to our provision of the Services to You.
3.2. The risk of loss in trading or holding Cryptocurrency can be high. The price of a given Cryptocurrency can vary greatly in a very short space of time. Many Cryptocurrencies are not backed by any asset, commodity or central bank. You should ensure that You fully understand these risks and You may therefore wish to take legal or financial advice before using the Service or placing any order.
3.3. You accept the inherent security risks of providing information and dealing online over the Internet and agree that We have no liability or responsibility for any breach of security unless it is due to our gross negligence.
| 4. | Users |
4.1. You must set up and maintain an account to use the Service and submit orders (an “Account”). Your eligibility to use the Service will be assessed on a case-by-case basis and may depend on the country where You reside. Enigma reserves the right to refuse to allow You to establish an account or use the Service for any reason at its absolute discretion.
4.2. You represent and warrant that Your use of the Service, and Your entry into each Transaction to which You become a party complies with applicable law and regulation in Your jurisdiction, including but not limited to: (i) legal capacity and any other applicable legal requirements in Your jurisdiction for trading Cryptocurrency and using the Service, (ii) any foreign exchange or regulatory restrictions applicable to Your use of the Service, and (iii) the receipt of any governmental or other consents (or exemptions) that You may need to be obtain prior to Your use of the Service.
4.3. Nothing in these Terms shall be deemed, nor shall cause, You and Enigma to be treated as partners or joint ventures.
| https://enigma-securities.io/tob/enigma-securities-ltd |
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
| 5. | The Service |
5.1. We will process Your orders in relation to Crypto at our absolute discretion. In order to provide the Service, Enigma may rely on data and prices of third party exchanges and/or arrange for orders to be executed with or through an unaffiliated third party (the “Related Services”). You acknowledge and understand that Enigma has no responsibility or liability for the provision of the Related Services which, whether provided by an affiliate or otherwise, are outside the scope of the Terms. Any authority granted by You to Enigma shall extend to the providers of the Related Services, where applicable.
5.2 The Service includes Crypto exchange services (namely the buying and selling of Crypto). Enigma shall not, nor is it under any obligation to, provide You with any advice in relation to the merits or suitability of any Transaction and You are required to rely on Your own judgement before submitting any order to Us.
| 6. | Orders |
6.1. You must submit all orders in accordance with these Terms and/or the Enigma Website if applicable. You acknowledge that We reserve the right to decline any order for any reason (including Your breach of the Terms, inadequate funds in Your Account, or market conditions).
6.2. If, following acceptance but before execution of Your order, an event takes place which, in Our reasonable opinion, means it is no longer reasonable to execute such order (for example regulatory action, change in law or following the request of an applicable third-party exchange), You acknowledge that We may cancel Your order without any liability to You (and update Your account balance accordingly).
6.3. Irrespective of the time at which (or medium by which) You place an order, You agree to pay or receive the price at the time the associated Transaction is executed. You acknowledge and understand that the nature of the Crypto market means that the price at which Your Transaction is executed may vary significantly from the price quoted at the time of Your order. Enigma is not liable for any such price fluctuations. The Service is independent of any exchanges, and We are under no obligation to quote or refer to a particular price or index.
| https://enigma-securities.io/tob/enigma-securities-ltd |
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
6.4. We will use our reasonable endeavours to act upon any request to cancel or amend an order, before it is confirmed. You acknowledge and agree that if We are unable to cancel or amend an order before it is confirmed, You will be bound by the resultant You agree to accept the price in which Transactions are executed as final and binding.
6.5. You acknowledge and understand that all Transactions are entered into on a matched principal basis and Enigma owes You no fiduciary duty in the course of providing the Service. For the avoidance of doubt, nothing in these Terms shall preclude Enigma (or any other party approved by Enigma at Our absolute discretion) from acting as a market maker (“Market Making Activity”). Any terms, conditions, agreements or rules in relation to Market Making Activity shall be provided separately.
| 7. | Funds |
7.1. Enigma’s fund settlement process operates on either a same day (T+0) or delayed settlement basis. All purchase orders to buy Crypto must be paid for with an amount of fiat currency equal to the relevant purchase price plus any associated fees transmitted to and received by our relevant account(s). For all sell orders to dispose of Crypto: (i) the associated amount of Crypto; and (ii) an amount of fiat currency equal to the associated fee, must be transmitted to and received by our relevant accounts. Failure to conclude that will result in the rejection of future orders. A list of fiat currencies We accept is available on Our website (“Accepted Currency”) or will be communicated to You in due course. If You attempt to make a payment in any currency other than an Accepted Currency, then such payment may be rejected.
7.2. It is Your responsibility to ensure that You hold sufficient cleared funds and Crypto (when applicable) in your bank account and Crypto wallet to satisfy the settlement of any Transaction. The Service does not include the provision of margin.
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
| 8. | Price |
8.1. You acknowledge and understand that when You enter into a Transaction via the Service, the fee for the Transaction will be a fee determined by Us, taking into account market conditions. Such price may include a spread (the “Spread”) as against the price at which we purchased the Crypto. You acknowledge and understand that the size of the Spread can vary dependent on market conditions.
8.2. You also acknowledge that any third-party fees, such as conversion charges and/or card processing fees, will be passed on to You (“Third Party Fees” and together with the Spread, the “Fees”).
| 9. | Cash/Crypto Transmission |
9.1. We will establish and maintain one or more bank accounts or digital wallets for accepted fiat currency or Crypto to be transmitted to us by You prior to an Order being executed. You acknowledge and accept that once transmitted, the funds or Crypto will be held in Our account in Our name.
9.2. You acknowledge and understand that: (i) Your funds or Crypto will therefore be held in the same bank account or digital wallet as Enigma’s own funds or Crypto; (ii) the rules and regulations of the FCA’s Client Asset Sourcebook do not apply to You and/or Your use of the Service and Related Services and therefore You may not benefit from the FCA client money regime for the protection of Your funds or Crypto post transmission to Our account; (iii) the transfer of funds or Crypto from You to Us is solely referable to Your purchase of Crypto or Our purchase of Your Crypto and is not therefore a deposit as defined under the FCA In the event of our insolvency, in respect of fiat currency, You will rank as an unsecured creditor of ours for return of such funds if such entitlement arises under the relevant insolvency laws of England; and (iv) in the event of insolvency in relation to the Third Party Account Provider, Enigma may only have an unsecured debt claim against the Third Party Account Provider on Your behalf if such entitlement arises under the relevant insolvency laws of England. Enigma does not accept any liability for losses resulting from its insolvency or the insolvency of a Third-Party Account Provider. Your claim in respect of Crypto if such a claim arises following the insolvency of the Enigma Wallet holder may be limited to an unsecured debt claim, and the Crypto or cash sum You receive in respect of Your Crypto may be insufficient to satisfy Your Account balance.
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
9.3. In respect of the transfer of the funds, we will aim to credit Your Account with the corresponding amount of Crypto (provided the terms of your Order have been accepted by Us) within 1 business day of receipt of the relevant Order. In respect of withdrawals, we will debit Your Account with the corresponding amount of fiat currency following Your authorisation. The corresponding funds will then settle to Your bank account within 3 business days. We are not responsible for any delay in the settlement of a Transaction resulting from circumstances beyond our control, including any third-party systems failure.
9.4. You acknowledge and understand that the Crypto Which Enigma supports may change from time to time.
9.5. You will not be entitled to interest in respect of any funds or Crypto held by Us, a Third-Party Account Provider or an Enigma Wallet holder.
9.6. As described above, Your money and Cryptocurrency will not be segregated. Consequently, If We or a Third- Party Account Provider become insolvent, there may be delays in identifying individual assets, increasing the risk of loss.
10. Tax
It is Your sole responsibility to determine whether and to what extent any taxes apply to the Transactions and, if applicable to report and remit the correct payment to the appropriate tax authorities. Enigma does not and will not provide any advice with respect to the tax implications of Your entry into Transactions.
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
| 11. | Delivery |
Following the execution of a Transaction, delivery will occur on Enigma’s records and Your Account balance will be updated accordingly.
| 12. | Security |
12.1. You shall be solely responsible for controlling and monitoring the use of the password to Your Account, and shall not permit any person to provide Your password, to any third party. You acknowledge and agree that You shall be bound by any actions taken through the use of Your Account including all orders and the resulting Transactions or other arrangements, as applicable, whether or not such actions were authorised by You. We accept no liability for any loss that You may sustain due to compromise of Your password and/or Account that did not arise directly as a result of Our loss or negligence. If You believe Your Account has been compromised, You should contact us immediately at info@enigma-securities.io.
12.2. By registering an Account, You agree to be bound by and to indemnify and hold Enigma harmless for any and all actions taken by, or omissions of, individuals using an instruction to transfer Crypto to a digital wallet (a “Wallet”).
| 13. | Information Provided |
13.1. Any information provided to You via Our website or otherwise shall not constitute investment advice. You may use this information for the purposes of the Service only, and shall not disseminate or reproduce such information. You acknowledge that the information in any price quoted or referenced on the website, as applicable, may be different from the execution price of the Transaction. Enigma does not recommend that any Crypto should be bought, sold, acquired or held by You and will not be held responsible for any decision you make in this regard based on the information provided by Enigma.
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
13.2. Enigma does not provide investment, tax, or legal advice, and you are solely responsible for assessing whether any transaction you enter into via Our Service is appropriate for you based on your objectives, financial circumstances and risk tolerance.
13.3. We provide the Service on an “as-is” basis to facilitate the submission of orders and execution of Transactions and any reasonably related activity (the “Permitted Purpose”).
| 14. | Your Warranties |
14.1. You hereby represent and warrant that:
14.1.1. You have the right, power, and ability to enter into and perform under the Terms;
14.1.2. In all material respects You are and have been in compliance with the laws of the United Kingdom and any other jurisdiction where You carry on business including any anti-money laundering laws or any anti bribery and corruption laws and will remain in compliance with all such laws for as long as You are party to the Terms;
14.1.3. You have not taken and will not take any actions in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay or authorisation of the payment or giving of, or a request or acceptance of, money, Crypto or anything else of value, to or by any other person (whether or not a government official) while knowing that all or any portion of the money or value offered, given or promised to such other person is for the purpose of securing the improper performance of that person’s function or the misuse of that person’s position; and
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
14.1.4. In the event that You authorise Enigma to transfer Crypto to a Wallet, whether hosted by You or a third party, such Wallet is beneficially owned by
14.2. In connection with the foregoing representations and warranties, You further agree as follows:
14.2.1. You shall indemnify, defend and hold Enigma harmless for any and all direct claims, losses or damages arising from or related to any breach of the foregoing representations and warranties. In no circumstance, shall You have liability for losses suffered by Enigma or any third party for any special or consequential damage, loss of profits, loss of goodwill or loss of business opportunity arising under or in connection with this Agreement, whether arising out of negligence, breach of contract, misrepresentation or otherwise; and
14.2.2. Enigma may terminate Your Account immediately upon written notice in the event that it concludes, in its reasonable opinion, that You have materially breached any representation or warranty under this Agreement.
| 15. | No Warranty |
15.1. The Services are provided on an “as is” and “as available” To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, we specifically disclaim any implied warranties of title, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and/or non-infringement. We do not make any representations or warranties that access to any part of the Services will be uninterrupted or error-free.
15.2. Neither Enigma nor its affiliates gives any express or implied warranties or representations (including warranties of satisfactory quality and fitness) relating to: (i) any third party systems or protocols used to support the Service; (ii) the long-term value of any Crypto; (iii) the liquidity of any Crypto market or exchange; (iv) the accuracy or timeliness of historical Crypto price data made available to You by one of Our brokers; (v) the amount of time needed to execute a Transaction following an order (which is dependent on factors outside of Our control); (vi) the immutability or security of blockchain or underlying software underpinning any Crypto or any digital wallet (including the Enigma Wallet) associated with the Service (together, the “Technology”); or (vii) the freedom of the Technology from any errors, viruses or disruption.
| 16. | Limitation of Liability |
Enigma shall not be liable to You or any person for any losses, liabilities, damages, claims, costs or expenses arising from: (i) the performance of any Related Services; (ii) any non-material delay in the execution of a Transaction; or (iii) the occurrence of any event described in Clause 17, above (except where such an event was caused by Our negligence, fraud or wilful default). Without limitation to the above, in relation to each claim You may bring against Enigma, in no event shall Enigma be liable for any amount greater than the value of the Crypto and fiat currency that is credited to, (or where applicable, ought to have been credited to) Your Account at the time of any alleged loss or claim.
In no event shall You be liable for any amount greater than the value of the Crypto and fiat currency that is credited to, (or where applicable, ought to have been credited to) Your Account at the time of any alleged loss or claim.
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
| 17. | Termination |
We may, at Our sole discretion: (i) close Your Account for any reason by giving seven (7) days’ written notice or (ii) with or without prior notice suspend or terminate the Service (or any part of the Service) without liability to You.
You may, at Your sole discretion close Your Account for any reason by giving seven (7) days’ written notice.
If Your Account is in credit on the date of termination (howsoever occurring), We will aim to transfer the funds and/or Crypto to Your bank account or Crypto wallet (as applicable) within 3 working days minus any Fees or payments that are due to Us.
| 18. | Supplemental Terms |
If You have agreed to use Connectivity or a Trading Platform (both as defined in Appendix 1), the terms of Appendix 1 will also apply.
| 19. | Governing Law |
These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the law of England and Wales. The courts of England and Wales will have exclusive jurisdiction to adjudicate any dispute arising under or in connection with these Terms.
Appendix 1
Electronic Connectivity and Trading Platform Facilities
A1 Access and use: We may permit You to place transaction orders in cryptocurrencies and derivatives thereof (including foreign exchange) with us by direct electronic communication to us through an electronic system (“Connectivity”). We may also provide You with electronic access to a facility to enable You to execute Crypto transactions electronically through us (the “Trading Platform”) which includes all related software and accompanying documentation. Your right to use Connectivity or the Trading Platform and any financial data, market and business information provided on or through Connectivity at the Trading Platform (“Information”) is limited to use for the purpose of receiving and viewing Information for the transmission and execution of transaction orders. We may amend the terms of this Appendix 1 with respect to the addition of a financial instrument or an execution issue to our Connectivity or Trading Platform services.
The parties shall not enter into any derivatives transactions.
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
A.2 Licence: Connectivity and the Trading Platform are owned by us (and/or an affiliated entity) or third parties that licence their use to us (and/or an affiliated entity). You acknowledge and agree that Connectivity and the Trading Platform are the exclusive property of ours and/or the Licensors, and that the Information is the exclusive property of the Company and/or the Licensors or such licensor’s third party vendors or their suppliers, and we the Licensor and such third party vendors and their suppliers retain all proprietary right, title, and interest, including, without limitation, copyright, in the Information. We grant You a personal, limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to access and use Connectivity and the Trading Platform under the terms of this Appendix 1. You shall not copy, license, sell, transfer, make available Connectivity or the Trading Platform or information to any other person. You shall not remove or alter any copyright notice or other proprietary or restrictive notice contained in Connectivity, the Trading Platform or Information.
A.3 Access responsibility: You are responsible for obtaining and maintaining, at Your cost, the necessary computer equipment and internet access required to enable You to access and use the Connectivity, the Trading Platform and Information. You are responsible for any equipment, software or internet access provided by a third party which You require to access and use Connectivity and the Trading Platform. You acknowledge and agree that we (and affiliated entities) are not responsible for any Connectivity or Trading Platform interface applications with third parties such as execution venues, information vendors and other investment firms such as derivative exchange execution and clearing brokers.
A.4 Information changes: Certain Information may be provided by third parties. If any of the Information ceases to be furnished by any third party vendors in a manner which is compatible with Connectivity or the Trading Platform, we may remove as much Information as is affected, without advance notice, without incurring any liability to You, and without any change to any of Your payment or other obligations. Further, we may modify, amend, alter, update, supplement or replace Connectivity or the Trading Platform software (which, among other things, determines the functionality and appearance of some or all of the Connectivity or Trading Platform features) from time to time, in whole or in part, without any notice (except for material changes to functionality as reasonably practical), without incurring any liability to You, and without any change to any of Your payment or other obligations. You acknowledge and agree that Your use of Connectivity or the Trading Platform after any modification, amendment, alteration, update, supplement or replacement shall constitute Your acceptance of such modification, amendment, alteration, update, supplement or replacement. We agree that the collection, use, and disclosure of your personal information will only be processed in accordance with our Privacy Policy which is accessible here: Privacy Policy – Enigma (enigma-securities.io).
A.5 Security: You shall keep any user name, password or access code (referred to in this Appendix 1 as “User Codes”) provided to You for Connectivity or access to the Trading Platform confidential and secure. You shall be responsible for the safeguarding and security of Your User Codes. You shall be solely responsible for all orders and transactions arising from any person’s Connectivity use or access to the Trading Platform using Your User Codes notwithstanding any lack of our access controls or the failure of any access controls we may have implemented. You shall notify us immediately and in writing in the event of (i) any loss or theft of part or all of the User Codes; or (ii) any actual or suspected unauthorised use of the User Codes; or (iii) any actual or suspected breach of security or confidentiality of the User Codes. You shall maintain with respect to Connectivity and the Trading Platform adequate systems and controls to ensure that (i) use is only by authorised personnel; (ii) order accuracy, order size, compliance with credit and order limits is checked and validated; and (iii) order direction, order duplication and order retransmission errors do not occur. You will ensure that no computer viruses, worms or similar items are introduced through Connectivity to our computer systems and networks or to the Trading Platform. You will be responsible for the installation and proper use of any virus detection software which we may require.
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
A.6 System risk: Connectivity the Trading Platform and Information is provided “as is”. The entire risk as to the quality and performance of Connectivity or the Trading Platform or Information and any third party related goods and services is with You. We (or affiliated entities) make no warranties (express or implied), representations, or guarantees as to merchantability, fitness for any particular purpose, performance, service continuity, absence of interruptions or errors or otherwise with respect to Connectivity or the Trading Platform or Information. Neither we nor our affiliated entities nor licensors, third party vendors or suppliers of Connectivity, the Trading Platform or Information, shall have any obligation or liability to maintain Connectivity, the Trading Platform or Information or to supply any corrections, updates or releases. We reserve the right, in our absolute discretion and without prior notice, to reject cancel or refuse to display or seek execution of any order for any reason. We may at any time and in our absolute discretion impose and vary limits and conditions upon the placement of orders using Connectivity or the Trading Platform including limits on size, order types and execution venues and conditions concerning collateral requirements.
A.7 No execution guarantee: You acknowledge and agree that Connectivity or Trading Platform order entry does not guarantee order execution. We will not be responsible for any execution of orders that are not received by reason of Connectivity or Trading Platform malfunction or otherwise. When You use Connectivity or the Trading Platform, unless You have received an electronic order acknowledgement, Your order will be deemed not to have been received. In the event You dispute or deny knowledge of any order which has been electronically acknowledged we will in either case be entitled immediately to liquidate or otherwise offset the position in the relevant investment or financial instrument without prejudice to such other rights we may have under this Appendix 1. Execution venues may reject or cancel Your transaction orders for which we accept no responsibility. You acknowledge that: (1) orders may be delayed for many reasons and the price of a security at the time of order entry may not be the same as the price of such security at the time such order is executed; and (2) cancellation of orders may not be possible prior to execution, even if the cancellation order is received prior to the time at which the order was to be executed.
A.8 System compliance training: You shall provide Your employees that use the Connectivity or Trading Platform with adequate information and training upon (i) the terms of this Appendix 1; and (ii) execution venue rules which we or our affiliated entities are subject and which You must also comply to ensure there is no breach of such rules by us or an affiliated entity. With respect to Connectivity or Trading Platform use for transactions on regulated markets, multilateral trading facilities or exchanges You shall neither engage in, nor facilitate, nor fail to take reasonable steps to prevent:
| ● | any action or any course of conduct that has the effect, or may be expected to have the effect, of artificially and/or abnormally moving the price or value of any cryptocurrency, or securities admitted to the regulated market or exchange, or any instrument underlying such cryptocurrency or securities or the level of any index of which such cryptocurrency or securities are a component; |
| ● | entering artificial orders or otherwise entering into or causing any artificial transaction; |
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
| ● | reporting a fictitious transaction or any other false data to the regulated market, exchange or other competent authority or causing such data to be input into any of their systems; |
| ● | any action or any course of conduct that creates or may reasonably be expected to create any false or misleading impression as to the market in, or price or value of, any cryptocurrency, securities or related financial instruments; |
| ● | any other action or any other course of conduct that may damage the integrity and the transparency of the regulated market or exchange; or |
| ● | agreeing or acting in concert with, or providing any assistance to, any person with a view to or in connection with any action or course of conduct referred to in paragraphs (a) to (f) inclusive. |
A.10 System misuse: You shall not use the Connectivity or Trading Platform for orders or transactions for or in connection with any activity which may constitute a fraudulent or illegal purpose or market abuse or otherwise use the Connectivity or Trading Platform in contravention of any applicable law and regulatory provisions. For the purposed of this Appendix 1 “market abuse” means behaviour in relation to investments which involves insider dealing, market manipulation or market distortion in breach of applicable laws or regulatory provisions. You undertake to familiarise Yourself and comply with any applicable law and regulatory provisions concerning the short sale of securities if You seek to execute a short sale transaction and You will ensure that Your use of the Connectivity or the Trading Platform will not result in a breach by us (or any affiliated entity) of any applicable law and regulatory provisions concerning the short sale of securities or any terms of this Appendix 1 concerning short sale orders or transactions.
A.11 Order entry error: If an order entry is made using the Connectivity or Trading Platform by mistake or does not reflect the intended transaction (an “erroneous order”) then You shall be responsible for amending or cancelling such orders as necessary and for closing any resultant positions subject to our rights in this Appendix
A.12 Pre-execution controls: We reserve the right to limit Your use of Connectivity and the Trading Platform and apply pre-execution trading controls as may be appropriate to preserve compliance with applicable laws or regulations or this Appendix 1 or any other trading limits or redirection which may be notified to You. With respect to the use of Connectivity or the Trading Platform we shall have the right to reject or cancel orders or enter off-setting orders or restrict Your ability to enter further orders in the event You act in breach of the terms concerning Connectivity or the Trading Platform in this Appendix Connectivity or the Trading Platform, Your access thereto and any information, service feature or function provided by means of Connectivity or the Trading Platform may be changed, limited, suspended, discontinued or terminated by us at any time without notice or liability.
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
A.13 Disclaimer: Neither ourselves nor any affiliated entity (nor any director, officer or employee thereof) shall have any liability to You or any third party for any consequential losses, expenses, costs, claims, damages (including punitive, special or exemplary damages) or for any account of profits or other restitutionary relief of any kind whatsoever arising from or incidental to the provision of access to or use of Connectivity or the Trading Platform or Information (including any failure to provide access to Connectivity or the Trading Platform or any operational failure of Connectivity or the Trading Platform.
A.14 Indemnity: You shall indemnify and hold us and any affiliated entity harmless (and our respective employees, officers, directors and agents) from and against any and all claims, demands, legal actions or proceedings and all liabilities, damages, losses, expenses and costs (including legal and accounting fees and expenses) (collectively “Losses”) arising out of or incidental to Your use of, or access to, Connectivity or the Trading Platform or any associated third party services or equipment provided under the terms of this Appendix 1 except to the extent that any such Losses, as finally determined by a Court of competent jurisdiction, were caused solely and directly by dishonest or wilful misconduct of us or any affiliated entity.
A.15 Third party software: To the extent that You are using Connectivity or the Trading Platform in conjunction with a third party software (including, but not limited to, an algorithm), we expressly disclaim liability for any Losses arising from such third party software. This disclaimer is without prejudice to any other provision of the Terms or Appendix 1.
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Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited - Enigma
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Privacy Policy Terms of Business - Enigma Securities Limited Terms of Business – Enigma Markets Inc Terms of Business – Enigma Overseas SA Enigma Securities All Rights Reserved © 2025 Website Design
Enigma Securities Ltd. is an FCA registered Cryptoasset business (930442) and an Appointed Representative of Makor Securities London Ltd. which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (625054).
This website is intended solely for Investment Professionals (i.e. persons having professional experience in matters relating to investments) within the meaning of Article 19 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (as amended).
Enigma’s products and services are reserved for Investment Professionals exclusively. Any person who is not an Investment Professional, i.e. does not have professional experience in matters relating to investments, should not rely on this website.
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ELECTRONIC RECORD AND SIGNATURE DISCLOSURE
From time to time, HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA. (we, us or Company) may be required by law to provide to you certain written notices or disclosures. Described below are the terms and conditions for providing to you such notices and disclosures electronically through the DocuSign system. Please read the information below carefully and thoroughly, and if you can access this information electronically to your satisfaction and agree to this Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure (ERSD), please confirm your agreement by selecting the check-box next to ‘I agree to use electronic records and signatures’ before clicking ‘CONTINUE’ within the DocuSign system.
Getting paper copies
At any time, you may request from us a paper copy of any record provided or made available electronically to you by us. You will have the ability to download and print documents we send to you through the DocuSign system during and immediately after the signing session and, if you elect to create a DocuSign account, you may access the documents for a limited period of time (usually 30 days) after such documents are first sent to you. After such time, if you wish for us to send you paper copies of any such documents from our office to you, you will be charged a
$0.00 per-page fee. You may request delivery of such paper copies from us by following the procedure described below.
Withdrawing your consent
If you decide to receive notices and disclosures from us electronically, you may at any time change your mind and tell us that thereafter you want to receive required notices and disclosures only in paper format. How you must inform us of your decision to receive future notices and disclosure in paper format and withdraw your consent to receive notices and disclosures electronically is described below.
Consequences of changing your mind
If you elect to receive required notices and disclosures only in paper format, it will slow the speed at which we can complete certain steps in transactions with you and delivering services to you because we will need first to send the required notices or disclosures to you in paper format, and then wait until we receive back from you your acknowledgment of your receipt of such paper notices or disclosures. Further, you will no longer be able to use the DocuSign system to receive required notices and consents electronically from us or to sign electronically documents from us.
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All notices and disclosures will be sent to you electronically
Unless you tell us otherwise in accordance with the procedures described herein, we will provide electronically to you through the DocuSign system all required notices, disclosures, authorizations, acknowledgements, and other documents that are required to be provided or made available to you during the course of our relationship with you. To reduce the chance of you inadvertently not receiving any notice or disclosure, we prefer to provide all of the required notices and disclosures to you by the same method and to the same address that you have given us. Thus, you can receive all the disclosures and notices electronically or in paper format through the paper mail delivery system. If you do not agree with this process, please let us know as described below. Please also see the paragraph immediately above that describes the consequences of your electing not to receive delivery of the notices and disclosures electronically from us.
How to contact HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA.:
You may contact us to let us know of your changes as to how we may contact you electronically, to request paper copies of certain information from us, and to withdraw your prior consent to receive notices and disclosures electronically as follows:
To contact us by email send messages to: docusign@hashdex.com
To advise HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA. of your new email address
To let us know of a change in your email address where we should send notices and disclosures electronically to you, you must send an email message to us at docusign@hashdex.com and in the body of such request you must state: your previous email address, your new email
address. We do not require any other information from you to change your email address.
If you created a DocuSign account, you may update it with your new email address through your account preferences.
To request paper copies from HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA.
To request delivery from us of paper copies of the notices and disclosures previously provided by us to you electronically, you must send us an email to docusign@hashdex.com and in the body of such request you must state your email address, full name, mailing address, and telephone number. We will bill you for any fees at that time, if any.
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To withdraw your consent with HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA.
To inform us that you no longer wish to receive future notices and disclosures in electronic format you may:
i. decline to sign a document from within your signing session, and on the subsequent page, select the check-box indicating you wish to withdraw your consent, or you may;
ii. send us an email to docusign@hashdex.com and in the body of such request you must state your email, full name, mailing address, and telephone number. We do not need any other information from you to withdraw consent.. The consequences of your withdrawing consent for online documents will be that transactions may take a longer time to process..
Required hardware and software
The minimum system requirements for using the DocuSign system may change over time. The current system requirements are found here: https://support.docusign.com/guides/signer-guide-signing-system-requirements.
Acknowledging your access and consent to receive and sign documents electronically
To confirm to us that you can access this information electronically, which will be similar to other electronic notices and disclosures that we will provide to you, please confirm that you have read this ERSD, and (i) that you are able to print on paper or electronically save this ERSD for your future reference and access; or (ii) that you are able to email this ERSD to an email address where you will be able to print on paper or save it for your future reference and access. Further, if you consent to receiving notices and disclosures exclusively in electronic format as described herein, then select the check-box next to ‘I agree to use electronic records and signatures’ before clicking ‘CONTINUE’ within the DocuSign system.
By selecting the check-box next to ‘I agree to use electronic records and signatures’, you confirm that:
| ● | You can access and read this Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure; and |
| ● | You can print on paper this Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure, or save or send this Electronic Record and Disclosure to a location where you can print it, for future reference and access; and |
| ● | Until or unless you notify HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA. as described above, you consent to receive exclusively through electronic means all notices, disclosures, authorizations, acknowledgements, and other documents that are required to be provided or made available to you by HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA. during the course of your relationship with HASHDEX TECHNOLOGY LTDA.. |
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Exhibit 31.1
Certification by Principal Executive Officer
Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
I, Bruno Ramos de Sousa, certify that:
| 1. | I have reviewed this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF; |
| 2. | Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report; |
| 3. | Based on my knowledge, the condensed financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report; |
| 4. | The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have: |
| (a) | Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared; |
| (b) | Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of condensed financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles; |
| (c) | Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and |
| (d) | Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and |
| 5. | The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s Board of Directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions): |
| (a) | All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and |
| (b) | Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting. |
| Date: November 10, 2025 | By | /s/ Bruno Ramos de Sousa |
| Name: | Bruno Ramos de Sousa | |
| Title: |
Principal Executive Officer Hashdex Asset Management, Ltd., Sponsor of Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF |
Exhibit 31.2
Certification by Principal Financial Officer
Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
I, Samir Elias Hachem Kerbage, certify that:
| 1. | I have reviewed this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF; |
| 2. | Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report; |
| 3. | Based on my knowledge, the condensed financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report; |
| 4. | The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have: |
| (a) | Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared; |
| (b) | Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of condensed financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles; |
| (c) | Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and |
| (d) | Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and |
| 5. | The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s Board of Directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions): |
| (a) | All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and |
| (b) | Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting. |
| Date: November 10, 2025 | By | /s/ Samir Elias Hachem Kerbage |
| Name: | Samir Elias Hachem Kerbage | |
| Title: |
Principal Finance Officer and Principal Accounting Officer Hashdex Asset Management, Ltd., Sponsor of Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF |
Exhibit 32.1
Certification by Principal Executive Officer
Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
In connection with the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2025 (the “Report”) of Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF (the “Registrant”), as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on the date hereof, I, Bruno Ramos de Sousa, the Principal Executive Officer of Hashdex Asset Management, Ltd., Sponsor of the Registrant, hereby certify, to the best of my knowledge, that:
| (1) | The Report fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended; and |
| (2) | The information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Registrant. |
| Date: November 10, 2025 | By | /s/ Bruno Ramos de Sousa |
| Name: | Bruno Ramos de Sousa | |
| Title: |
Principal Executive Officer Hashdex Asset Management, Ltd., Sponsor of Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF |
Exhibit 32.2
Certification by Principal Financial Officer
Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
In connection with the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2025 (the “Report”) of Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF (the “Registrant”), as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on the date hereof, I, Samir Elias Hachem Kerbage, the Principal Finance Officer and Principal Accounting Officer of Hashdex Asset Management, Ltd., Sponsor of the Registrant, hereby certify, to the best of my knowledge, that:
| (1) | The Report fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended; and |
| (2) | The information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Registrant. |
| Date: November 10, 2025 | By | /s/ Samir Elias Hachem Kerbage |
| Name: | Samir Elias Hachem Kerbage | |
| Title: |
Principal Finance Officer and Principal Accounting Officer Hashdex Asset Management, Ltd., Sponsor of Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF |