This week has been another crazy one bitcoin.

It surged by 11% Friday to surpass $40,000 for only the second time in 2 weeks. It was below $37,000 just a few days prior.  

However, bitcoin is still volatile. Betterment’s Dan Egan claims that it has become a staple in a portfolio.

In the early days of bitcoin, for example, it was seen as a sudden path to riches — now, it acts more like a “digital gold asset” that may provide a market hedge, he told CNBC’s “ETF EdgeOn Monday.

Egan stated that it is maturing to become a more viable alternative such as gold and precious metals. You should keep a small amount of it in your portfolio to diversify.

Bitcoin prices still remain well below the November highs. Bitcoin traded close to $70,000 during its peak. 

ETFs offer alternative exposure to bitcoin. After the debut of the first Bitcoin futures ETF in 2013, bitcoin prices surged last year. ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO)In October.

ProShares’ Simeon Hyland stated that this futures ETF can be used for short-term and long-term investors in the same interview.

He said that “The futures markets, if any, are a better representation of price and more liquid.” The BIO trades a lot of volume each day by itself and it has options as well.

Hyman said that Fidelity was rejected by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a Bitcoin ETF application. However, BITO is still promising.

“The futures marketplace [has]Multiple exchanges can converge to those futures prices,” he stated. It is a compelling proposition because of its key features, which are combined with ETF structures.

The BITO ETF has risen 5% in the month of March, but it is down 12% over the entire year. 

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