Key Takeaways:
- Companies and stock exchanges seeking to list the first-ever Bitcoin spot ETFs in the US have submitted the final documents that align with the SEC’s guidelines for the product
- BlackRock, Grayscale, Fidelity, ARK Invest, WisdomTree, VanEck, and Franklin Templeton made amended 19-b and S-1 filings that may be approved this week
- The SEC is expected to decide on ARK Invest and 21Shares’ spot Bitcoin ETF by January 10. There is speculation that the regulator could green-light multiple ETF proposals
The highly anticipated Bitcoin-focused exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are on the verge of being launched in the US after the issuers and exchanges seeking to list the funds submitted final versions of their 19-b filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Bitcoin ETF Hopefuls Submit Final Amendments For Their Funds To The SEC
The amended filings made Friday on behalf of BlackRock, Grayscale, Fidelity, ARK Invest, and Invesco, is a proposal for rule changes on stock exchanges that will allow for the Bitcoin ETFs to be traded. The Chicago Board and Options Exchange (Cboe BZX) also filed 19-b forms for VanEck, WisdomTree, Pando Asset AG, and Franklin Templeton.
The 19-b documents follow last month’s amended S-1 filings that addressed the SEC’s feedback on the ETFs and named the authorized participants (APs) for the funds. APs are broker-dealers responsible for the creation and redemption of shares for ETFs.
Fourteen applicants are vying to launch the first Bitcoin spot ETF in the US, with multiple issuers expected to be approved simultaneously by the regulator in the coming days.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the applicants anticipate SEC Commissioners to vote on the exchange-rule filings sometime this week. They also noted that the amended filings do not guarantee that the funds will be approved. Nevertheless, they remain optimistic.
Bitcoin Spot ETFs Closer To Being Listed After Issuers Aligned Their Proposals With SEC Guidelines
Bloomberg reported that the Commission’s staff had no additional feedback on the paperwork for several of the firms after their latest 19-b filings, which indicates that the applicants have finished addressing key regulatory issues and aligned their proposals with the SEC’s guidelines.
The resolution also bodes well for the prospect of the Spot Bitcoin ETFs, paving the way for BTC-focused products to be introduced to the traditional financial markets.
Meanwhile, the ETF issuers also need the SEC to clear the final versions of their S-1 filings. The regulator had given the companies a deadline of January 8 to file the prospectus documents for their Bitcoin funds. Although the 19-b and S-1 forms may or may not be approved at the same time, the regulator is expected to decide on the S-1s first.
Should the issuers obtain approvals for both documents, the ETFs could start trading as soon as the next business day. The final deadline for the SEC to decide on one of the applications, from ARK 21Shares, is on January 10.
Insiders say the securities watchdog may green-light all the finalized applications it is comfortable with before the deadline.
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BlackRock And Grayscale Expect Their Bitcoin ETFs To Be Approved This Week
Fox Business reported last week that BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager and one of the firms working to bring a spot Bitcoin ETF to the market, expects its application to be approved on Wednesday.
At the same time, a spokesperson for Grayscale Investments, another Bitcoin ETF hopeful, said the amended 19-b and S-1 filings were an “important step” towards uplifting GBTC as a spot Bitcoin ETF. The crypto asset manager is looking forward to converting its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into an ETF.
GBTC is the world’s largest Bitcoin-as-a-commodity fund that manages $26 billion worth of BTC.
Cryptocurrency proponents are eagerly awaiting the SEC to approve the spot Bitcoin ETFs, which they believe has a 90% probability of happening this week. Experts predict that the funds could usher in billions of dollars in fresh investments to the cryptocurrency market.
Speculation of Bitcoin spot ETFs being approved in the US has resulted in the price of BTC skyrocketing in recent months. Just last week the leading cryptocurrency rallied past the $45,000 mark for the first time since April 2022.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin (BTC) is changing hands at $43,553 – down 1% in the last 24 hours.
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