Michael Sapir is co-founder and chairman of Maryland-based ProShares, the asset management firm that launched the first U.S. Bitcoin-linked ETF, BITO, in October 2021. A native of Florida, Sapir received a law degree from Georgetown University in addition to BA and MBA degrees from the University of Miami.
Sapir first came to prominence in the mutual funds industry, having worked with the Rydex family of mutual funds before founding ProShares (as ProFunds Group) in 1997 along with two partners. In 2006, Sapir established the separate ProShares arm of ProFunds squarely focused on exchange-traded funds. The firm has a history of introducing innovative financial products to the market, such as the the first leveraged and inverse ETFs in the U.S.
Michael Sapir’s lucky day that etched his name in the history of digital finance came on Oct. 19, when ProShares’ Bitcoin futures-based ETF started trading on the NYSE Arca exchange. After years of deferred decisions from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Сommission (SEC) in response to their application, ProShares eventually won the tight race to bring the first cryptocurrency-linked ETF to the U.S. market.
The much-anticipated offering was off to a triumphant start. Within its first two days after launch, the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF amassed over $1.2 billion of value, marking one of the most successful ETF debuts ever. The historical development was likely instrumental in Bitcoin’s breach of the $60,000 mark around the same time.
Sapir’s leadership in expanding U.S. investors’ opportunity to get Bitcoin exposure through a regulated, traditional venue won him many accolades, including being named in “The Bloomberg 50” list, which highlights some of the most influential names in global business, in early December.
The next step for the movement that Sapir’s ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF exemplifies is the fight for a spot, rather than futures-based, Bitcoin ETF. Given the staunch resistance from the SEC boss Gary Gensler, it is not guaranteed that this milestone will be achieved this year. As of January 2022, ProShares does not have another crypto ETF filing in the SEC’s pipeline, having seemingly pulled out of this next phase of the race.
Along with Bitcoin and the rest of the cryptocurrency market, BITO has fallen on hard times in early 2022. The fund lost some 35% in less than three months since its October launch. The trend, however, is likely to reverse once the crypto market enters yet another bull phase and mainstream investors’ interest in digital assets spikes again.
Sapir’s vision of Web3-linked financial products does not end at Bitcoin ETFs, though. In the waning days of 2021, ProShares filed an application with the SEC for an ETF tracking an index of metaverse companies. Should the regulator approve it, the ProShares Metaverse Theme ETF will track the performance of the companies that make up the Solactive Metaverse Theme Index, including Meta, Apple, and Nvidia.
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