A decision on Bitwise and Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETFs has been delayed by the SEC
The SEC now expects to make a decision on Bitwise and Grayscale's Bitcoin exchange-traded offerings in early February.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued two new deadline extension notices for Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETF).
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) postponed two major Bitcoin exchange-traded offering proposals on Wednesday, including NYSE Arca’s “actual” Bitcoin ETF, Bitwise Bitcoin ETP Trust, and Grayscale Bitcoin Trust’s Bitcoin ETF.
The SEC now expects to decide whether to approve or disapprove Bitwise’s BTC ETF and Grayscale’s BTC ETF on February 1 and February 6, respectively.
“The Commission believes it is appropriate to designate a longer period within which to act on the proposed rule change so that it has sufficient time to consider the proposed rule change and any comments received,” the SEC stated in both notices.
Bitwise Asset Management filed for a physical-backed Bitcoin ETF on Oct. 14, intending to provide exposure to “actual BTC” rather than derivatives such as Bitcoin futures or other indirect exposure. In November, the firm dropped its own Bitcoin futures-based ETF application, as many such products were launching in the United States.
Grayscale is the world’s largest Bitcoin fund, with $45.6 billion in assets under management. On October 19, the company filed an application to convert its flagship Bitcoin product to an ETF.
The latest news comes as the SEC maintains its tough stance on physical crypto ETFs while approving a number of industry ETFs with indirect exposure to crypto, including ProShares’ BTC futures ETF. After delaying a decision in June, the SEC rejected a sport Bitcoin ETF proposed by asset manager WisdomTree in early December.
The SEC rejected a physical Bitcoin ETF proposed by VanEck, one of the world’s first companies to file for a Bitcoin ETF. Nonetheless, the company chose to launch a Bitcoin futures ETF on the Chicago Board Options Exchange.
