The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's division of investment management raised concerns about the safety of bitcoin investments Thursday, Reuters reports.
Dalia Blass, SEC's director of the division of investment management, detailed the concerns in a Jan. 18 letter to two trade groups representing fund managers with proposals for funds holding bitcoin or related assets. The division demanded answers for at least 31 questions on how bitcoin-themed mutual funds or exchange-traded funds would price, store and safeguard the asset.
"There are a number of significant investor protection issues that need to be examined before sponsors begin offering these funds to investors," according to the letter.
Last year, Bitcoin grew 1,500 percent, rallying investor demand. Now, several companies want to launch exchange-traded funds to open up the cryptocurrency to a retail market, Reuters reports.
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