However, as Bitcoin gains wider acceptance with mainstream and institutional investors, new ways to gain exposure to BTC are being introduced.
If a hacker or thief gains access to a credit or debit card, the intermediary will refund your money and go after the culprits responsible for you.
Although horror stories do exist that focus solely on hacks or other types of loss, the worst possible kinds to read are those related to forgotten passphrases and private keys.
Early Bitcoin users often with massive amounts of BTC have sadly forgotten or misplaced hand-written passphrases and private keys, resulting in millions of dollars worth of BTC locked away and potentially lost forever.
With all that risk related to simply owning and holding bitcoin, why would anyone consider owning it? The first recorded price per BTC is as low as under a penny.
But what are these investors to do to avoid the risk associated with self-custody? The answer is in Bitcoin-based ETFs and mutual funds.
For example, the Fidelity Advantage Bitcoin ETF relies on the same institutional-grade foundation Fidelity offers to all clients and gives investors a way to access Bitcoin exposure from a trusted brand.