Key takeaways
- Crest aims to deliver dollar-based returns exceeding Treasury bill yields, while LBAF focuses on growth measured in Bitcoin terms.
- The tokenisation infrastructure is provided by Hadron by Tether.
- Minimum investment begins at USD10 for CREST or 0.0001 BTC for LBAF.
- The subscription window will end on October 30, 2026.
Bitfinex Securities welcomes tokenised blockchain funds
Crest and LBAF are set to become the first tokenised funds available on Bitfinex Securities, a regulated platform for raising capital and trading securities. According to CMCC Global, the tokens rely on Hadron by Tether, which offers the infrastructure needed to issue, manage and track the funds onchain.
This launch converts existing investment funds into a tokenised structure. Crest, which was co-founded by onchain analyst and investor Willy Woo together with CMCC Global, started operations in March 2022, while LBAF debuted in April 2025.
Each fund operates as a segregated portfolio under CMCC Global SPC in the Cayman Islands. Their manager was founded in Hong Kong in 2016 and operates across digital asset funds, equity venture capital, funds of hedge funds and capital markets, with offices in Asia and North America.
Different return targets, market-neutral strategies
Crest is denominated in US dollars and seeks returns above US Treasury bill yields. LBAF instead targets 8–12% net annualised returns in Bitcoin terms, serving investors who measure performance in Bitcoin units rather than dollars.
Both are multi-manager quantitative hedge funds. Their allocations span market-neutral digital asset strategies, including funding-rate arbitrage, cross-venue arbitrage, volatility arbitrage, market making and decentralised finance, or DeFi.
CMCC Global said the underlying strategies have generated positive returns in every year since 2022, including through the Luna collapse, the FTX bankruptcy and the USD19bn flash crash in October 2025.
One-token minimums and share-backed mechanics
The minimum subscription is one token per fund, with issuance prices of USD10 per CREST and 0.0001 BTC per LBAF. Tokens will be issued through Bitfinex Securities El Salvador.
The tokenised blockchain funds maintain a 1:1 economic representation of their underlying participating fund shares. Tokens are minted against those shares and burned when investors redeem them.
Participation remains subject to full know-your-customer and anti-money-laundering controls. Eligible holders receive access to secondary-market trading on Bitfinex Securities 24 hours a day, every day of the year, as well as self-custody options using approved, whitelisted addresses.
BTCS backs the launch as subscriptions open
BTCS S.A. has agreed to act as anchor investor for the launch through Bitfinex Securities, intending to allocate a triple-digit Bitcoin amount. The digital asset treasury company is listed in Warsaw and Frankfurt under NewConnect: BTF and FRA: 36C.
“Our Active Treasury model has one rule: the bitcoin on our balance sheet should earn more bitcoin,” said Marlena Lipińska, CEO of BTCS S.A. She pointed to LBAF’s Bitcoin-denominated returns, professional management and regulated tokenised security format as reasons for the commitment.
Subscriptions for both initial public offerings are open to eligible investors, with benefits for early participants during the incentive period. The subscription window closes on October 30, 2026.
Article produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the editorial team.