The United States Securities and Exchange Commission has begun receiving S-1 amendments from potential ETF issuers.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission has begun accepting filings by exchanges in a step toward approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETF). 19b-4 amendments were filed for spot BTC ETF applications from asset managers BlackRock, Valkyrie, Grayscale, Bitwise, Hashdex, ARK 21Shares, Invesco Galaxy, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton, VanEck and WisdomTree. Most companies have now also filed the S-1 amendments with the SEC, including Valkyrie, WisdomTree, BlackRock, VanEck, Invesco and Grayscale, ARK Invest and 21Shares. Some experts have speculated that final approval for the spot Bitcoin ETFs will drop before Jan. 10 — the deadline for an offering from ARK Invest and 21Shares.
However, according to a survey from ETF issuer Bitwise, only 39% of U.S.-based financial advisers believe a Bitcoin ETF will be approved this year. Despite this pessimism, most surveyed advisers do expect a Bitcoin ETF to be approved eventually. 22% said approval would come in 2025, and 24% answered “after 2025.” Another 2% stated that the approval would come in 2023, although this prediction didn’t materialize. When added together, this implies that a full 87% believe that an ETF will be approved eventually. 12% answered “never” when asked this question.
Some even consider the potential approval a “historic mistake.” Dennis Kelleher, CEO of the nonprofit organization Better Markets, has urged the SEC not to approve a spot Bitcoin ETF, arguing that it goes against the core principles of the regulatory body. Kelleher emphasized that if the SEC were to approve a spot Bitcoin ETF, it could lead to investors facing significant risks of potential fraud. “The approval of these spot Bitcoin ETPs would not only expose investors to a market thoroughly contaminated with fraud and manipulation,” he stated.
