The chief executive of a firm approved for a spot-Bitcoin ETF in the U.S. this week says the regulatory change represents a major shift for Bitcoin investors as well as companies indirectly involved in cryptocurrency.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved 11 exchange-traded funds that invest directly in Bitcoin, and many of them began trading on Thursday morning.

The move to allow Bitcoin ETFs, which are already permitted in Canada, offers investors exposure to Bitcoin without needing to own the currency itself. Experts have said the change paves the way for more traditional investors to get involved in the crypto market. 

Steven McClurg, chief investment officer of Valkyrie, which had an ETF approved on Wednesday, said the regulatory decision is a significant one for companies involved in crypto mining, which is a technical way of creating new Bitcoins.

“A lot of financial advisors, when they look at Bitcoin, they look at a vehicle that says: ‘Well, it's not really a company. It doesn't have a balance sheet, it doesn't have cash flows,’ but when you look at the miners, they can look at that and say ‘OK, well this is the business of Bitcoin. These companies actually have cash flows,’” he told BNN Bloomberg in a television interview on Thursday.

“We're actually seeing more volume right now in our Bitcoin mining ETF than we are in our Bitcoin-spot ETF.”

The new products also give investors options when it comes to their portfolios, McClurg added.

“There's a lot of different vehicles now and it's good because it gives people choices,” he said. “The people that are buying Bitcoin in exchange are still going to do so and the ones that want to do it in an ETF, now they have the opportunity to do so.”

Lucas Matheson, Coinbase’s Canada country director, which has partnered with eight of the 11 spot ETF platforms, believes the move is important for the industry, even if Coinbase isn’t directly involved in ETFs.

“It’s incredible how much effort has gone into getting this approved,” he said.

“We see this as a huge moment for the industry, really legitimizing (Bitcoin) and crypto as the future of money.”

Earlier in the week, several of the prospective ETF traders released their fee structures in advance of the SEC’s decision, with many advertising ultra-low rates to attract investors. 

While some spot-ETF traders charge higher fees, McClurg said he’s seeing most investors sticking with the platforms they’re most comfortable with.

With files from Bloomberg News