Grayscale Partners With FTSE Russell for New Crypto Indexes Business

Five benchmarks will track the performance of different categories of crypto assets.

AccessTimeIconOct 24, 2023 at 4:24 p.m. UTC

U.S. crypto asset manager Grayscale Investments has entered into a partnership with FTSE Russell – the index division of London Stock Exchange parent LSE Group – to create a new crypto indexes business.

They revealed five indexes that track the performance of different crypto sectors, including currencies, smart contract platforms, financials, consumer and culture, and utilities and services, the companies announced Tuesday.

  • U.S. CPI Returns Flat in May; Donald Trump Wants All Remaining Bitcoin to Be 'Made in USA'
    01:45
    U.S. CPI Returns Flat in May; Donald Trump Wants All Remaining Bitcoin to Be 'Made in USA'
  • Crypto Hacks Totaled $19B Since 2011: Crystal Intelligence
    00:57
    Crypto Hacks Totaled $19B Since 2011: Crystal Intelligence
  • Consensus Heads to Toronto in 2025
    10:29
    Consensus Heads to Toronto in 2025
  • Crypto.com Received Approval to Register in Ireland; AI-Linked Tokens Underperform After Apple Event
    01:57
    Crypto.com Received Approval to Register in Ireland; AI-Linked Tokens Underperform After Apple Event
  • Some indexes serve as the basis for exchange-traded products like ETFs, and the partnership comes as Grayscale seeks to convert its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into an ETF. CoinDesk Indices, a division of CoinDesk, provides the benchmarks that serve as the basis for GBTC and the Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE), and the FTSE partnership doesn't involve that. (Both Grayscale and CoinDesk are owned by Digital Currency Group.)

    “Investors have increasingly expressed interest in diversifying beyond crypto’s largest assets," Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein said in a statement. "Many look to Grayscale to better understand this robust, evolving asset class,” he added. “Grayscale Crypto Sectors formalizes our specialized view of the crypto landscape.”

    London-based FTSE Russell currently benchmarks around $20 trillion in assets. The company’s crypto indexes are constructed by Digital Asset Research, a New York-based provider of crypto data.

    Edited by Nick Baker.

    Disclosure

    Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

    CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.

    Helene Braun

    Helene is a New York-based reporter covering Wall Street, the rise of the spot bitcoin ETFs and crypto exchanges. She is also the co-host of CoinDesk's Markets Daily show. Helene is a graduate of New York University's business and economic reporting program and has appeared on CBS News, YahooFinance and Nasdaq TradeTalks. She holds BTC and ETH.