National Bank of Bahrain Launches Region’s First Bitcoin Investment Fund

The National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) has launched the GCC region’s first Bitcoin-linked structured investment fund for institutional and accredited investors.

This product was developed in partnership with ARP Digital and is designed to provide a secure avenue for investors to capitalize on Bitcoin’s gains.

The Bitcoin Investment Fund

According to local media reports, the structured investment fund is capped at a predefined threshold and offers a unique opportunity for accredited investors to benefit from Bitcoin’s upward performance.

This design ensures that while investors can take advantage of Bitcoin’s growth, they also enjoy 100% capital protection against downturns. This serves as a hedge against the volatility typically associated with digital currencies.

Hisham AlKurdi, the Group Chief Executive of Markets & Client Solutions at NBB, expressed pride in the launch, “We are proud to introduce this bespoke structured investment, which blends the appeal of digital asset exposure with the security of capital protection.”

The new initiative aligns with NBB’s strategy to enhance its wealth management offerings by providing tailored solutions that balance growth potential with risk mitigation. This move comes amid rising demand for investment products that allow exposure to digital assets while fully protecting investors from market fluctuations.

Abdulla Kanoo, co-founder of ARP Digital, remarked on the importance of their partnership, saying that it would be a game-changer in the regional market. He explained that by combining their expertise in digital assets with NBB’s broad financial sector reach, they have developed a product that offers Bitcoin exposure within a “highly secure framework.”

Bahrain’s Expanding Crypto Ecosystem

Dalal Buhejji, Executive Director of Business Development for Financial Services at the Bahrain Economic Development Board, commented, “The launch of this Bitcoin-linked structured investment is a prime example of the true potential of Bahrain’s robust financial services ecosystem, which provides an attractive and streamlined environment for innovative solutions.”

Bahrain has been steadily attracting more digital asset businesses due to its efforts to cultivate an “innovation-friendly” crypto and fintech ecosystem.  According to Eric Anziani, COO of Crypto.com, this approach includes implementing clear regulations that strike a balance between consumer protection and commercialization.

In September, the company was granted a license by the Bahrain central bank, joining other crypto exchanges like BitOasis and Binance, which has been operating locally since March 2022.

A recent report from Chainalysis also revealed that the Middle East and North Africa region accounted for 7.5% of global cryptocurrency transaction volume between July 2023 and June 2024, totaling $338.7 billion.

Most of these transactions were driven by institutional and professional investors. While centralized exchanges (CEXs) remain the primary source of crypto inflows in MENA, interest in decentralized platforms and DeFi applications is slowly growing.