asset managers are jockeying to create the first us bitcoin exchangetraded fund after a top securities regulator signaled a path to approval in the past two weeks proshares invesco ltd  vaneck valkyrie digital assets and galaxy digital have all filed plans for bitcoin futures etfs if approved the funds would make trading bets on bitcoin’s future value akin to buying a stock earlier in august securities and exchange commission chairman gary gensler indicated that he would be receptive to etfs that will trade in bitcoin futures rather than cryptocurrency itself as long as they follow stricter rules usually reserved for mutual funds the sec has already approved the first us bitcoinfuturesbased mutual fund which started trading last month futures let traders bet on whether an underlying market such as oil gold or in this case bitcoin will rise or fall futures trade separately from the underlying asset they are derived from values between the two sometimes deviate sometimes widely asset managers have been trying to persuade regulators to greenlight bitcoin etfs for nearly 10 years so far the sec has rejected or delayed a decision on the funds the regulator has taken a cautious approach to regulating the volatile crypto market the digital assets have boomed in popularity with amateur traders and a growing number of professional money managers