Wall Street firm files new Bitcoin ETF that trades only after dark

On Dec. 9, Nicholas Financial Corporation filed paperwork with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the Nicholas Bitcoin and Treasuries AfterDark ETF, a product designed to hold Bitcoin-linked exposure only during overnight hours, exiting positions before the U.S. market opens.

The strategy is built around the idea that Bitcoin’s strongest price action tends to occur outside traditional Wall Street trading hours, particularly overnight when U.S. equity markets are closed and global crypto liquidity dominates.

The filing states:

“The Fund’s portfolio is designed to provide long bitcoin exposure during U.S. overnight hours (from market close to the following market open) and to hold short-term U.S. Treasuries and other cash equivalents during U.S. daytime trading hours.”

Related: Big money exits XRP just as its first U.S. ETF goes live

According to the filing, the AfterDark ETF would buy Bitcoin-linked instruments after U.S. markets close and sell them shortly after markets reopen the following day.

Rather than holding Bitcoin directly, the fund would use at least 80% of its assets to gain exposure through regulated financial instruments, including:

• Bitcoin futures contracts

• Bitcoin exchange-traded products (ETPs) and ETFs

• Options on Bitcoin-related ETFs and ETPs

During U.S. trading hours, the fund would rotate out of Bitcoin exposure and allocate capital into short-term U.S. Treasurys, aiming to preserve capital and reduce intraday volatility.

This approach sets the AfterDark ETF apart from spot Bitcoin ETFs, such as BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which hold Bitcoin directly on behalf of investors.

Instead, the AfterDark ETF resembles an active trading strategy packaged inside an ETF, where the timing of exposure — rather than long-term holding — is the core investment thesis.

The filing relies on instruments that track Bitcoin’s price without requiring direct custody of the asset.

Bitcoin futures allow investors to speculate on Bitcoin’s future price without owning it outright.

ETPs and ETFs trade on stock exchanges like shares and provide price exposure to Bitcoin. Options give investors the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell an asset at a predetermined price.

By combining these tools, the AfterDark ETF proposes to gain Bitcoin exposure at night and avoid exposure during U.S. market hours, when volatility and selling pressure have historically been higher.

The filing follows market research suggesting Bitcoin’s gains are disproportionately concentrated during off-hours trading.

CNBC cited data from Bespoke Investment Group showing that an investor who bought shares of IBIT at the U.S. market close and sold them at the next day’s open would have recorded a 222% gain since January 2024.

By contrast, an investor who bought IBIT at the market open and sold at the close would have lost 40.5% over the same period.

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas noted that historical data supports the idea that Bitcoin tends to perform better outside U.S. market hours, but cautioned that multiple factors may be at play.

“We looked at this last year and found most of the gains are in fact after hours. Doesn’t mean the ETFs aren’t having impact.”

He added that derivatives positioning and ETF-related flows could also influence the pattern.

“Some of this is positioning bc of the ETFs etc or derivatives based on flows etc etc. But yeah, bitcoin After Dark ETF could put up better returns, we’ll see tho[ugh].”

According to data from Farside Investors, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have seen roughly $57.9 billion in net inflows since their debut, led by BlackRock’s IBIT with more than $62 billion.

Fidelity’s FBTC follows with over $12 billion, while Grayscale’s GBTC continues to record sizable outflows.

As of Dec. 16, Bitcoin (BTC) traded around $85,902 and was down on the session, while the global crypto market cap stood at roughly $3.02 trillion with $129.46 billion in 24-hour volume. BTC and ETH dominance were about 56.8% and 11.7%, respectively, per CoinGecko data.

Related: What is Bitcoin mining? Explained

This story was originally published by TheStreet on Dec 15, 2025, where it first appeared in the MARKETS section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.