Bitwise has introduced a new ETF that formalizes a narrative many macro investors already believe in: fiat currencies lose purchasing power over time, scarce assets don’t.
The Bitwise Proficio Currency Debasement ETF (NYSE: BPRO) combines Bitcoin and precious metals into a single, actively managed product aimed squarely at hedging currency debasement.
What’s inside BPRO
▪️ Minimum 25% allocation to gold at all times
▪️ Exposure to Bitcoin
▪️ Additional allocations to silver, platinum, palladium
▪️ Mining equities for leverage to metals
▪️ Actively adjusted based on market conditions
The fund is designed mainly for financial advisors, especially those with portfolios that currently have zero exposure to hard assets.
Why Bitwise thinks this matters now
Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan argues that currency debasement is one of the biggest long-term risks to wealth, driven by debt, deficits, and monetary expansion. The past year supports that view:
▪️ Gold up ~79% YoY
▪️ Silver up ~207% YoY
▪️ Bitcoin volatile, but still structurally supply-constrained
This is the classic “debasement trade” — updated for a world where Bitcoin now sits alongside gold.
Bitcoin vs gold: same hedge, different drivers
Gold’s recent surge has been fueled largely by central bank buying since 2022. Bitcoin doesn’t have that buyer — yet. Instead, Hougan points to spot Bitcoin ETFs, which have been absorbing more than 100% of daily mined supply.
The thesis is simple: if ETF demand persists, Bitcoin could eventually see a gold-style supply shock.
Important trade-offs
▪️ BPRO expense ratio: 0.96% (higher than spot $BTC ETFs)
▪️ Bitcoin still behaves more “risk-on” in the short term
▪️ Gold remains the preferred hedge for central banks
Big picture
BPRO doesn’t bet on Bitcoin replacing gold — it treats them as complementary hedges against fiat depreciation. One is thousands of years old. The other is digital, finite, and increasingly institutionalized.
For crypto investors, the signal is clear:
Bitcoin is no longer just a tech bet — it’s being packaged as macro insurance.
