- In an omnibus order, the SEC approved eight spot Ethereum ETFs.
- This occurs merely four months after the agency initially authorized spot Bitcoin ETFs.
Eight spot Ethereum ETFs were approved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in an order, confirming a last-minute rush to get them approved.
The ETFs from BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, Bitwise, VanEck, Ark, Invesco Galaxy, and Franklin Templeton have their 19b-4 forms approved by the SEC.
Trading cannot start until the ETF issuers’ S-1 registration statements become effective, even though the forms have been approved. Only recently has the SEC begun to speak with issuers on their S-1 forms. Although the duration of this process is unknown, some analysts predict that it may take several weeks.
According to Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart, “I think that if they work really hard, it can be done within a couple of weeks, but there are plenty of examples of this process taking three or more months in the past.”
Ethereum ETFs are approved unexpectedly
It appeared that the SEC would not approve the Ethereum ETFs until this past week. The SEC and issuers’ lack of communication served as the foundation for this.
That was, however, altered early this week when the SEC abruptly began contacting issuers and requested that 19b-4 forms be completed and returned. Some in the SEC appeared caught off guard by the sudden 180-degree turn when this occurred.
This gave rise to conjecture regarding the reason behind the seemingly abrupt shift in opinion. According to one person who spoke with The Block, “it’s completely unprecedented, which means it’s entirely political.”
Bipartisan House legislators had pushed the SEC to approve the ETFs prior to the approvals. The MPs stated that given the Commission’s other decisions this year, it seems like a logical next step that would both validate the legal justification for the spot Bitcoin ETPs ruling and show consistency in the Commission’s implementation of its criteria.
Over the course of the week, the Grayscale Ethereum Trust discount decreased from -24% to -6% as the likelihood of approvals increased. Holders will be able to exchange their shares for the cash value of the underlying ether when the trust transforms into an ETF.
They have accumulated 207,000 bitcoin ($14 billion) after the approval of the Bitcoin ETFs, on top of the 621,000 bitcoin ($42 billion) that were held in the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust prior to its conversion into an ETF.
Ethereum ETFs, meanwhile, might find it difficult to gain the same degree of popularity. Eric Balchunas, a Bloomberg ETF analyst, predicted that the Ethereum ETFs may receive between 10% and 15% of the assets that their Bitcoin counterparts did.
That would put them anywhere between $5 and $8 billion, which is again for a typical launch over the initial years. That’s not too bad.
Disclaimer : This article was created for informational purposes only and should not be taken as investment advice. An asset’s past performance does not predict its future returns. Before making an investment, please conduct your own research, as digital assets like cryptocurrencies are highly risky and volatile financial instruments.
