Mr. Steve Kurz reports

INVESCO AND GALAXY TO OFFER EFFICIENT EXPOSURE TO SPOT BITCOIN THROUGH THE INVESCO GALAXY BITCOIN ETF (BTCO)

Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd.'s Galaxy Asset Management, in partnership with Invesco Ltd., a leading global provider of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), has launched Invesco Galaxy Bitcoin ETF (BTCO). BTCO invests directly in physical bitcoin to allow investors to access the performance of the market price of bitcoin, as measured by the Lukka Prime bitcoin reference rate through an ETF structure to provide additional safeguards and ease of trading. BTCO begins trading on the Cboe BZX Exchange today, removing many of the barriers to bitcoin investing.

For the first six months after launch, Invesco is waiving BTCO's entire fee on assets up to $5-billion, effectively bringing the total expense ratio of BTCO from 39 basis points to zero basis points, with the discretion to extend the fee waiver further.

"Through our partnership with Galaxy, the physically backed BTCO ETF benefits from an unparalleled level of combined knowledge and experience in ETF innovation and digital asset expertise," said Brian Hartigan, global head of ETF investments at Invesco. "We have a high conviction that digital assets have the potential to be a transformative asset class and believe bringing BTCO into a fully transparent and regulated market truly helps to further democratize the asset class."

One of the key factors that differentiates BTCO is Invesco's partnership with Galaxy Asset Management, an affiliate of Galaxy Digital Holdings. Galaxy's deep knowledge of digital assets and experience in investing across all stages of the ecosystem strengthen the operational risk management of the ETF. Galaxy acts as the execution agent in the buying and selling of bitcoin for cash on behalf of BTCO, bringing seasoned expertise and institutional-grade infrastructure to the process, which may benefit execution of the creation and redemption of BTCO shares.

"What sets the BTCO ETF apart from other similar products is the partnership between Invesco and Galaxy," said Steve Kurz, global head of Galaxy Asset Management. "Our collective experience managing crypto ETPs [exchange-traded products] in Canada, Brazil and Europe, and, more specifically, our direct experience managing a cash create bitcoin ETF in Canada, has been instrumental in developing a product with low fees, strong liquidity and minimal tracking error."

Galaxy also conducts some of the most-comprehensive and in-depth thought leadership and research on digital assets. Investors can pair this research with the ETF expertise of Invesco's dedicated product strategy teams to stay current on important developments in the digital asset space.

BTCO uses the Lukka Prime bitcoin reference rate to determine the fair market value (FMV) of the bitcoin it holds, reflecting the execution price of bitcoin on its principal market as determined by Lukka Inc., an independent third party digital asset data company. Lukka uses institutional data quality standards, such as AICPA (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants) service and organization controls (SOC), to ensure financial calculation accuracy and completeness in its evaluation of various bitcoin exchanges, assessing factors like oversight, trading volume and data integrity.

By purchasing bitcoin through an established financial vehicle, investors are relieved of some of the more difficult operational aspects of spot bitcoin, such as custodial duties and storage wallets to keep assets secure. BTCO offers flexible entry to and exit from the asset class, trading on a major exchange in a familiar investment vehicle. Unlike digital assets that are directly held, BTCO can be held in investment accounts like brokerages and easily added to an investment portfolio. The bitcoin holdings of BTCO are stored in institutional-grade storage through a custody agreement with Coinbase. Through Coinbase, bitcoin purchased by the ETF is kept in tamper-proof hardware modules in secure data centres with enhanced security features.

Galaxy Digital and its founder, Michael Novogratz, have demonstrated a strong commitment to the digital assets industry. Since 2018, Galaxy has been focused on building an operating environment for digital asset investment services and strategies well suited for institutional investors. Galaxy Asset Management, specifically, consists of a team of dedicated, seasoned professionals that employs a conservative, fiduciary-first approach that permeates every aspect of its business, which oversees $5.3-billion (U.S.) in assets under management (AUM). As a first-mover and leader in digital-asset- and blockchain-focused funds, Galaxy combines extensive experience at top-tier financial institutions and within the digital asset sector, working closely with bank platforms, institutional investors, and asset managers across distribution, client service, operations and portfolio management.

Invesco is one of the largest global ETF providers, with over $430-billion (U.S.) in AUM. Its flagship Invesco QQQ, launched more than 24 years ago, is one of the most recognized ETFs, as well as one of the most liquid securities. Invesco has an established record of using the ETF structure to bring previously inaccessible strategies to investors, such as the first actively managed ETF (PSR) in 2008, the first commodity pool ETF (DBA) in 2006, the first thematic ETF (PBW) in 2005 and the first senior loan ETF (BKLN) in 2011.

About Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd.

Galaxy is a digital asset and blockchain leader providing access to the growing digital economy. Galaxy serves a diversified client base, including institutions, start-ups and qualified individuals. Since 2018, Galaxy has been building a holistic financial platform spanning three complementary operating businesses: global markets, asset management and digital infrastructure solutions. The company's offerings include, amongst others, trading, lending, strategic advisory services, institutional-grade investment solutions, proprietary bitcoin mining and hosting services, network validator services, and the development of enterprise custodial technology. The company is headquartered in New York, with global offices across North America, Europe and Asia.