SEC delays decision on Valkyrie Investments’ spot Bitcoin ETF

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed the deadline for a decision on Valkyrie Investments’ application to launch a spot Bitcoin ETF to January 7, 2022.

“The Commission believes it is appropriate to set a longer period during which it will decide whether to approve or reject the proposed rule change, so that it has sufficient time to consider the proposal and the questions raised in the comment letters,” the agency said.

In June the SEC already extended the review timelines for the Valkyrie Bitcoin Fund’s approval. The firm filed a prospectus with the regulator in January 2021.

Earlier, the Commission approved the launch of a Bitcoin futures-based ETF by the company. The shares of the Valkyrie Bitcoin Strategy ETF began trading on Nasdaq on October 22.

The SEC also approved similar products from ProShares and VanEck. The latter, like Valkyrie, is awaiting a verdict on its application to launch a spot Bitcoin ETF. The regulator is expected to respond by 14 November.

ProShares Bitcoin Strategy, which was the first to receive the Commission’s “quiet approval”, began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on October 19.

Commenting on the event, SEC Chair Gary Gensler noted that the product rests on a “highly speculative asset class.”

Earlier, Valkyrie’s attempt to launch a leveraged instrument based on the bitcoin-futures ETF as a follow-on proved unsuccessful — the SEC rejected the application the day after filing.

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