Some analysts had predicted that spot Ether ETFs could start trading on U.S. exchanges by the end of June, but the SEC has yet to set an exact date.
United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler suggested to lawmakers that the regulator could sign off on the final approvals for listing and trading shares of spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds within three months.
In a June 13 hearing of the Senate Banking Committee discussing U.S. President Joe Biden’s 2025 budget requests for the SEC, Gensler said he expected the commission to approve S-1 registration statements for asset managers “sometime over the course of this summer.” On May 23, the SEC approved 19b-4 filings from eight companies, but the applications require S-1 approvals before the ETFs can begin trading on U.S. exchanges.
Tennessee Senator Bill Hagerty questioned Gensler on why the commission hadn’t “fully approved Ether ETFs,” claiming the SEC chair was not prioritizing a “constructive set of rules of the road for the crypto industry.” Though Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Rostin Behmam said Ether was a commodity in response to Senator Hagerty, Gensler did not directly answer the question but pivoted to Ether ETFs.
