21Shares today launched its Bitcoin and gold exchange-traded product, the 21Shares Bitcoin Gold ETP (BOLD), on the London Stock Exchange, expanding the range of crypto-linked investment products available to UK retail investors.
BOLD is the fifth cryptocurrency product from 21Shares to receive prospectus approval from the UK Financial Conduct Authority. It follows the firm’s existing Bitcoin and Ethereum offerings and comes as demand grows for regulated exposure to digital assets through traditional market infrastructure.
The product trades on the LSE in pounds sterling under the ticker BOLD and carries a 0.65% annual management fee, the company said.
It is fully physically backed by its underlying assets, with Bitcoin and gold held in institutional-grade custody and stored offline, a structure intended to reduce counterparty and custody risk compared to many retail investment options.
Bitcoin and gold as a means of risk management
Developed in partnership with ByteTree Asset Management, BOLD combines Bitcoin and gold into a single vehicle designed around risk management rather than fixed allocations.
The ETP rebalances monthly using inverse historical volatility, allocating more weight to the less volatile asset at each rebalance. The aim is to achieve roughly equal risk contribution from both Bitcoin and gold, rather than a simple 50/50 capital split.
This structure is happening as gold surges to new highs. Gold’s long-standing role as a store of value is intended to offset Bitcoin’s sharper price swings, particularly during risk-off environments, the company said.
As of January 12, 2026, BOLD had $40.1 million in assets under management and reported a three-year Sharpe ratio of 1.79, according to 21Shares. The product adjusts its holdings each month to stay aligned with its volatility-based framework, trimming the stronger asset and adding to the weaker one.
Russell Barlow, CEO of 21Shares, said the London listing reflects the firm’s push to broaden access to regulated crypto products in the UK.
“BOLD aims to give investors exposure to Bitcoin’s growth potential while retaining the relative stability of gold,” Barlow said, adding that the product is positioned as a potential hedge against inflation.
Charles Morris, founder and chief investment officer of ByteTree Asset Management, described Bitcoin and gold as increasingly complementary assets. He said BOLD applies a rules-based process to combine them in a transparent structure designed for investors navigating persistent inflation and monetary uncertainty.
Back in October 2025, the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority lifted its four-year ban on retail access to bitcoin and crypto exchange-traded notes, allowing firms to offer cETNs on FCA-approved exchanges such as the London Stock Exchange and Cboe UK.
The move followed months of consultation and signaled a more open—though still cautious—approach to crypto regulation.
FCA digital finance executive David Geale said the decision reflected a more mature and better-understood market, while maintaining investor protections.
Unlike ETFs, ETNs are debt instruments that track the price of assets like bitcoin without requiring investors to hold the underlying crypto.
