21Shares has expanded its line-up of digital asset investment products with the world’s first ETP providing directly backed exposure to MKR, the governance token of the MakerDAO platform.
MakerDAO is one of the most seasoned and successful decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms in existence.
The 21Shares Maker ETP (AMKR) has been listed on BX Swiss in Swiss francs, on Euronext Amsterdam in US dollars, and on Euronext Paris in euros.
MakerDAO is a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform that was launched in 2017 on the Ethereum blockchain. It was developed to allow any user to take out loans in its stablecoin, DAI, without the need for credit checks, by depositing other cryptocurrencies as collateral.
The platform aims to solve several issues found in traditional finance such as transparency, volatility, and centralization. It utilizes smart contracts to eliminate the need for trust in any party, replacing external audits and company statements with trackability via the blockchain.
MakerDAO’s loans are significantly overcollateralized, providing protection against the volatility of the backing crypto assets.
The second pillar of the MakerDAO ecosystem is its governance token, MKR, which is used for voting on network updates and also ensures that DAI remains closely tied to the dollar through unique stabilization protocols.
With a total market capitalization of more than $1.3 billion, MKR is currently the 33rd largest crypto asset globally.
The 21Shares Maker ETP offers institutional investors easy access to MKR through a liquid, regulated vehicle without the technical challenges of setting up private keys or crypto wallets.
It uses full direct, ‘physical’ replication with each ETP share being 100% collateralized by a corresponding investment in MKR which is stored using an institutional-grade cold-storage custody solution provided by Coinbase.
AMKR comes with an expense ratio of 2.50%.