With a plethora of bitcoin spot ETF applications knocking on the doors of regulators, it is only a matter of time before the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is forced to issue a decision on whether or not to approve them.
Estimates suggest the agency could approve the first application as early as August.
the first deadline is coming
According to Bloomberg ETF analyst james seifertThe ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF — which has been rejected in previous applications along with other spot ETFs — is the first in line to receive approval/rejection among a new wave of applicants.
The SEC’s first deadline to issue a response to ARK is August 8, the analyst said. However, this deadline may be delayed – an outcome that Bloomberg expects.
Seifert published a table last week with approximate estimates of approval deadlines on other applications. The first deadline for most other ETFs is expected in early September, while BlackRock’s deadline is expected to be September 2.
Deadline for Final Bitcoin ETF Decision: 3/19/24
Bitcoin Halving Estimated: 4/16/24
— Will Clemente (@WClementIII) 10 July 2023
less than six months remaining
The latest filings from several applicants reached the US Federal Register this week, including Bitwise. Blackrock, Fidelity, WisdomTree, VanEck, Invesco and finally Valkyrie on Friday.
This marks the official start of the SEC’s formal review of those applications, after which each has 45 days to approve, deny or delay them. The delay can extend up to a maximum of 240 days.
However, since ARK filed its first application with Bloomberg relatively quickly think over This is the most important application to watch. The deadline for its approval is January 10, 2024.
After BlackRock applied for its ETF in June, nearly all other ETF applicants proposed a nearly identical product to the asset management giant. All are now promising to form a surveillance-sharing agreement for their funds with Coinbase, the largest US crypto exchange.
Thus, a denial of one ETF by the SEC likely means denial for the rest, meaning that the order of all applications matters little. “SEC can still en masse deny/approve if it so chooses,” Said Seifert on Twitter on Tuesday.
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