Europe can’t buy Bitcoin ETFs, this CEO has a fix

European investors who want Bitcoin exposure can't buy BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust, the world's largest spot Bitcoin ETF, due to regulatory restrictions that block the product from retail access on the continent. In fact, they can't buy any Bitcoin ETF at all. 

Khing Oei is the founder and CEO of Treasury, a Netherlands-based Bitcoin treasury company backed by Winklevoss Capital that has accumulated 1,111 Bitcoin. While it currently operates as a private business, Treasury is building a publicly listed vehicle for European investors who have no other way to get clean Bitcoin exposure, and planning to differentiate from peers through Bitcoin yield generation and consolidation of companies trading below net asset value (NAV).

He sat down with TheStreet Roundtable at the Bitcoin Conference in Vegas to break down why Europeans need access to a Bitcoin treasury company.

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Why treasury companies exist

Oei says skeptics misunderstand the basic product market fit. A publicly listed treasury stock is the only way for many investors to get Bitcoin exposure inside a standard brokerage account.

"As a European citizen, you do not have access to the IBIT ETF for regulatory reasons. And most institutional investors with an active mandate can also not buy ETFs. So if any of those groups want access to Bitcoin in their trading app, you have no option, especially in Europe,” Oei said.

Access, according to Oei, is not enough by itself. Treasury companies need to add value in order to convince investors it is worth holding over spot Bitcoin.

How Treasury plans to outperform

Oei explained that Treasury is looking to other bitcoin treasury companies, such as Michael Saylor’s Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) for inspiration.

On the liability side, they are replicating the Strategy playbook. An active at-the-market (ATM) program alongside convertibles, hybrids, and preferred equity to raise capital for Bitcoin purchases.

On the asset side, they are doing something much different. They plan to generate yield on their Bitcoin through lending and options strategies to compound Bitcoin per share over time.

He also sees an opportunity for the sector to consolidate its businesses.

"There's now a number of Bitcoin strategy companies that trade below their NAV, which means it's an attractive solution for those shareholders to be taken over by someone else and for our shareholders to be acquiring essentially Bitcoin below spot value,” Oei said.

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The long game

Oei's five-to-ten-year thesis goes well beyond accumulation. He sees Bitcoin treasury businesses as the place where traditional finance (TradFi) and Bitcoin will converge. 

He explained, ‘I'm a genuine believer that as Bitcoin becomes more like digital gold and becomes increasingly important in the financial system, these Bitcoin treasury companies become somewhat of the bridge between Bitcoin as a digital asset and the traditional financial ecosystem.”

If he’s right, then Bitcoin treasury businesses like his will experience a massive boom over the next decade.