A novel exchange-traded fund (ETF) designed to provide investors with exposure to Bitcoin exclusively during overnight hours has debuted on the New York Stock Exchange. The Nicholas Bitcoin and Treasuries AfterDark ETF (NGHT), offered by issuer XFunds in partnership with Tidal Investments, launched on Wednesday, April 8, 2026.
The fund's strategy is to hold a mix of cash and short-term U.S. Treasuries during the traditional U.S. trading day. Then, around 4:30 p.m. ET, it allocates to Bitcoin through futures, options, and other Bitcoin ETFs, maintaining this exposure until the market opens the following morning. This structure aims to capture Bitcoin's price movements when U.S. markets are closed, a period CEO David Nicholas noted is "increasingly driven by global activity."
The launch coincided with a significant overnight price surge, illustrating the fund's potential utility. Following a ceasefire announcement between the U.S. and Israel on Tuesday evening, Bitcoin's price rose 5.8% from $68,600 to $72,600 between the market close on Tuesday and the open on Wednesday.
Nicholas acknowledged that initial concerns about a consistent intraday selling pattern in Bitcoin—which partly inspired the fund's creation—have "died down a little." He cited changing market conditions, including market-moving statements from former President Donald Trump outside U.S. hours. The fund employs a unique T-1 settlement procedure to ensure overnight moves are reflected in its accounting by the 9:30 a.m. ET market open.
The debut occurs amid a competitive reshuffle in the Bitcoin ETF landscape. On the same day, Morgan Stanley launched its own spot Bitcoin ETF (MSBT) with a low 0.14% fee, leveraging its vast network of financial advisors. Analyst Eric Balchunas projected it could attract $5 billion in assets within a year. Furthermore, spot Bitcoin ETFs saw a resurgence in inflows, with U.S.-listed funds pulling in approximately $471 million on Monday, April 7—the largest single-day total in six weeks.
While the AfterDark ETF is XFunds' third crypto-related offering, Nicholas raised the possibility of applying the same strategy to other digital assets like Ethereum and Solana, contingent on the initial product's success.
