Kazakhstan-based asset manager Fonte Capital has received regulatory clearance to launch Central Asia’s first spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund, widening institutional and retail access to the cryptocurrency in the region. The fund, named Fonte Bitcoin ETF OEIC and trading under the ticker BETF, will list on the Astana International Exchange on 13 August. Each share is fully backed by Bitcoin held in cold storage with U.S. custodian BitGo, offering investors regulated, physically backed exposure without the need to hold the underlying asset directly. The listing advances Kazakhstan’s strategy of positioning itself as a regional digital-asset hub after attracting a significant share of global Bitcoin mining. Fonte Capital said the product will track the market price of Bitcoin net of fees, with settlements available in U.S. dollars or Kazakh tenge.