The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is set to issue a positive decision on the launch of a spot Bitcoin ETF in the near term. This view was voiced by Grayscale Investments and Bitwise at the CoinDesk Consensus 2022 conference.
Executives from @Grayscale, @BitwiseInvest and @ValkyrieFunds all expressed optimism at #Consensus2022 that a spot #bitcoin ETF was well on its way to being approved by the @SECGov.
By @NelWanghttps://t.co/8KfTW7DIwo— CoinDesk (@CoinDesk) June 10, 2022
«There is a view in the crypto industry that the SEC simply says ‘no’, and now the facts show that,» said Matt Hogan, Chief Investment Officer of Bitwise Asset Management.
He noted that the SEC has approved futures-based Bitcoin ETFs under the Securities Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940. In the first case, the application was from Teucrium, in the second from VanEck, Valkyrie Investments and ProShares.
«This is a trajectory that ends with a spot Bitcoin ETF. So they [the SEC] are indeed progressing, just not at the pace of the crypto community,» Hogan added.
Grayscale’s Head of ETF Strategy David LaValle noted that earlier approval of the spot option in principle raised doubts. Now, in his view, the question is only the timing of the decision.
Valkyrie Investments’ Chief Strategy Officer Lori Tirnan agreed with colleagues, not ruling out the appearance of a spot Bitcoin ETF «in the next few years».
The SEC has yet to approve any spot Bitcoin ETF applications. The regulator is set to decide on Bitwise on June 29, and on the conversion of GBTC into an exchange-traded fund based on the first cryptocurrency — 6 July.
Earlier, Grayscale suggested that the Commission may have violated the law in approving futures-based Bitcoin ETFs. In late March, Grayscale’s chief executive Michael Sonnenschein did not rule out the possibility of filing a lawsuit against the SEC if the application was rejected.
Later, Grayscale Investments announced that former U.S. Department of Justice official Donald Verrilli Jr. joined the firm’s legal team.
As Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas noted, SEC changes to the clearing model could lay the groundwork for listing a spot Bitcoin ETF.
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