The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is preparing to make a flurry of decisions on seven fresh Bitcoin spot ETF applications before its earliest deadlines. After losing to Grayscale Investments in a U.S. federal appeals court, the SEC is under pressure to investigate these groundbreaking plans.
Bitwise, an investing firm, will learn its ETF application decision by September 1. According to SEC filings, BlackRock, VanEck, Fidelity, Invesco, and Wisdomtree will eagerly await the SEC’s ruling on their funds on September 2. Valkyrie, another major contender, is expected to be ruled on September 4.
The U.S. Court of Appeals ruled on August 29 that the SEC’s denial of Grayscale’s application to convert GBTC into a spot Bitcoin ETF was “arbitrary and capricious.” Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart notes that this verdict doesn’t require the SEC to approve Grayscale’s or other similar petitions in the future.
In a Bloomberg interview, Seyffart said Grayscale’s win increases the likelihood of a good outcome for future applicants. He expressed uncertainty regarding the timeline, as the SEC can postpone its determinations and has extra proposed deadlines for each fund, culminating in a final decision on the 240th day post-filing.
Hopeful applicants face the final SEC deadline in mid-March the following year. After the Grayscale ruling, the regulator has 90 days to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court or request an En banc review, which allows a full circuit court to overturn a three-judge panel decision. However, the SEC’s next measures are unclear.
If the SEC rejects an appeal, the court must detail how to enforce its order. This could involve instructing the SEC to approve or review Grayscale’s application. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas called the SEC’s withdrawal of Bitcoin futures ETFs “highly unlikely,” given its purported openness to Ethereum futures ETFs.
In anticipation of this critical SEC decision, the crypto community watches. These decisions might affect crypto investing and regulation, marking a turning point in ETF acceptability in the turbulent cryptocurrency industry.
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