Key takeaways:
- The US SEC has postponed deciding whether to accept or reject an Ether ETF offering made available on a spot basis by asset management firm Grayscale.
- One of the first statements made by the Commission came after an appellate court mandated that the SEC examine Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF offering in October.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed deciding whether to accept or reject an Ether Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) offering made available on a spot basis by asset management firm Grayscale.
A notice dated December 5 stated that the SEC would extend its review period before deciding whether to accept or reject a proposed rule change that would enable NYSE Arca to list and trade shares of the Grayscale Ethereum Trust.
One of the first statements made by the Commission came after an appellate court mandated that the SEC examine Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF offering in October.
According to the SEC, the Commission believes that a more extended timeframe for acting on the proposed rule change is appropriate, giving it enough time to evaluate the proposal and the challenges it raises. The SEC further stated:
“Accordingly, the Commission […] designates January 25, 2024, as the date by which the Commission shall either approve or disapprove, or institute proceedings to determine whether to disapprove, the proposed rule change.”
Although it has authorized investment vehicles linked to cryptocurrency futures, the SEC has never approved a spot BTC or ETH exchange-traded fund for listing on a US platform.
Suppose the Commission decides to allow a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). In that case, it may proceed by simultaneously approving funds from many firms, according to an estimate made by Bloomberg ETF expert James Seyffart.
In October, Grayscale submitted its initial application to the SEC, adding its name to the roster of businesses awaiting a response from the agency, to convert shares of its Grayscale Ethereum Trust into a spot Ether ETF. ARK 21Shares, Fidelity, VanEck, Hashdex, Invesco Galaxy, and BlackRock were among the companies that submitted applications for spot crypto ETFs.
