SEC Delaying Decision on Bitwise Spot Bitcoin ETF

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has delayed making a decision on yet another spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).

The announcement, in which the regulator postponed its decision on whether to allow Bitwise Asset Management to list a spot bitcoin ETF, also solicited public comment on the fund. Until then, the SEC said it would initiate proceedings to come to a decision on the matter of listing of Bitwise Bitcoin ETP Trust on Intercontinental Exchange Inc’s (ICE.N) NYSE Arca exchange.

As part of the delay, the SEC asked any interested parties to send in any comments they may have on the certain aspects of the application. These may include details such as the expected volume of the ETF, or questions about its potential influence on prices in bitcoin futures trading.

ETF rejects

The delay comes as the most recent in the SEC’s rejection of spot bitcoin ETFs by several different issuers in recent months. Last week, the regulator rejected Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust in a new filing, 7 days after rejecting a spot bitcoin ETF application filed by First Trust and SkyBridge Capital. Meanwhile, applications by Valkyrie and Kryptoin had been rejected in December.

In its initial application last year, Fidelity had proposed a rule change, which would allow investors the ability to access the fund through a traditional brokerage account. However, last week’s filing revealed the SEC had rejected the proposed rule change over concerns about fraud, manipulation, and investor protection.

There has been a prolonged renewed sentiment for spot Bitcoin ETFs since the SEC approved the first Bitcoin futures ETFs last year. The ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF proved to be one of the fastest selling ETFs in history. However, it seemed to capture most of the momentum building up to its release, which was consequently lacking for the Valkyrie Bitcoin Strategy ETF.

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