Following approval, UK investors can once again utilize tax-free individual savings accounts (ISAs) to hold cryptocurrency exchange-traded notes (ETNs), as reported by the Financial Times. Stratiphy, a fintech platform offering personalized investment strategies, will provide both crypto ETNs and Innovative Finance ISAs (IFISAs), allowing users to save up to £20,000 annually without incurring income tax or capital gains tax on returns.
ISAs come in various forms, including cash ISAs for interest and stocks and shares ISAs for equities and exchange-traded instruments. At the start of the current tax year, the UK's tax authority classified crypto ETNs as IFISA-only instruments, rendering last year's decision to lift the ban on retail access redundant due to the lack of mainstream IFISA offerings. Stratiphy will offer three ETNs from 21Shares, covering bitcoin, ether, and a BTC-gold combination. With £4 million in assets under management for 2,000 clients, Stratiphy's CEO notes a significant interest in these products as a means to diversify portfolios with a new, low-correlation asset class.