The cryptocurrency industry is heating up with rising prices and plenty of developments, one of which is the review of 2 Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) proposals by the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC).
The approval of Bitcoin ETFs has been an ongoing battle for multiple years now, but the SEC has not reviewed any Bitcoin ETF proposals since August 2018. However, the notable VanEck/SolidX proposal filed with Cboe BZX Exchange has officially kicked off the 45-day clock to an initial decision by the SEC.
Another highly anticipated Bitcoin ETF proposal filed by Bitwise Asset Management with NYSE Arca was published in the Federal Registrar for review last week. Therefore, we can expect to see a lot of interest and hype around a potential Bitcoin ETF being approved once again.
Could We See a Bitcoin ETF Approved Soon?
Thus far, every Bitcoin ETF submitted to the SEC for approval has been denied and pushed back to the maximum deadline where the application was forced to be withdrawn, to be resubmitted from square one.
However, a lot has happened in the crypto industry as a number of new advancements and products have entered the space. Speaking on this matter was Matt Hougan, Bitwise global head of research, who recently told Coindesk that the crypto ecosystem is evolving very rapidly.
Hougan said:
“A year ago there was maybe one qualified crypto custodian… and now there are half-a-dozen, and that number will go up from here.”
Adding to this, Hougan said:
“A little more than year ago, we didn’t have futures. A year ago we didn’t have nearly as many firms making markets. A few months ago, you didn’t have folks like Fidelity announced in the space. It’s evolving really, really quickly.”
Hougan believes that the rapid evolution of the crypto ecosystem may aid in getting a Bitcoin ETF product launched. However, Hougan later said that a Bitcoin ETF approval will ultimately depend on how companies approach their proposals, adding:
“All you can ask for a regulator is to lay out clear bars you have to clear before they will approve something.”
According to Gabor Gurbacs, director of digital asset strategy at VanEck who also spoke to CoinDesk, the company has actively been working with regulators and other major market participants to bring simplicity, transparency, and professional market standards to digital assets.
In his email to CoinDesk, Gurbacs then stated:
“I … hope that our investment in regulatory and market education, hard work and commitment will be honored when the time comes.”
Will a Bitcoin ETF proposal be approved this time around or will they continuously be denied? Let us know what you think in the comment section below.
