Bitwise brings passive investing to the cryptocurrency market
Bitwise Asset Management has begun accepting investors into an index fund it has developed offering exposure to cryptocurrencies. The firm claims the fund, called Hold 10, is the first index product giving investors access to digital currencies. The fund tracks the top 10 cryptocurrencies and is open to accredited investors. Roughly 60% of its index is tilted towards bitcoin. 

An application for Bitcoin in front of a window of the offices of the bank 'La Maison du Bitcoin' in Paris, France.

For people looking to get in on cryptocurrencies without having to bet on a single one, a new money management firm is trying to make crypto-investing as easy as buying the S&P 500.

Bitwise Asset Management has just started accepting investors into Hold 10, the world's first crypto-index fund, which lets people put money in the 10 largest cryptocurrencies as weighted by the total value of coins outstanding.

The fund was announced in October and is now open to accredited investors. On Tuesday, Bitwise also said it has raised $4 million from some of the best-known investors in financial technology, including Keith Rabois (through Khosla Ventures), David Sacks and Naval Ravikant.

"We and our investors believe that a vehicle like this, or passive index investing as an approach, is a great way for many people to participate in cryptocurrency," Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley told CNBC.

The Hold 10 index is the latest investment vehicle to launch in the cryptocurrency space. Just this week, bitcoin started trading in the futures market, while dozens of actively managed hedge funds have opened this year. Initial coin offerings, which let investors buy and trade cryptocurrencies created by individual companies, have raised over $3.7 billion in 2017, according to CoinDesk.