Bitcoin ETF Approvals Are Imminent as Gary Gensler Warns Again

There is still a little uncertainty regarding whether the Securities and Exchange Commission will approve spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) this week. However, analysts have dismissed delay signals as last-minute amendments to filings continue to roll in. 

On January 9, Chamber of Digital Commerce founder and CEO Perianne Boring reported that the SEC just issued additional comments on pending applicants’ S-1s. “This is a delay signal,” she added.

Bitcoin ETF Approvals Imminent 

However, January 10 is the final deadline for a decision on the Ark 21Shares spot Bitcoin ETF. Therefore, it would have to be a denial rather than another delay. 

Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seffart responded, confirming that the SEC did make comments on the pending application documents. He added that this wasn’t “out of the ordinary” and to “expect to see more amendments tomorrow because of this.”

“I don’t think this is necessarily a delay signal,” he added. 

“This just shows how quickly the SEC is turning these things around. Borderline unheard of to send over a document to the SEC in the morning and get comments back the same day.”

“If they wanted to delay, the issuers wouldn’t have gotten comments back tonight,” he concluded. 

Multiple spot BTC ETF applicants rushed to file their final Form S-1 amendments to the SEC this week. They included Valkyrie, WisdomTree, BlackRock, VanEck, Invesco, Galaxy, Ark, Fidelity, Bitwise, and Franklin Templeton.

Read more: How To Prepare for a Bitcoin ETF: A Step-by-Step Approach 

The amendments included information about fee structures or identities of the market makers for the potential products.

Former SEC chair Jay Clayton says that the approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF is “inevitable.”

In an interview with CNBC on January 8, he said it is a foregone conclusion that the highly anticipated funds will get the green light. “I think approval is inevitable. There’s nothing left to decide,” he said.

Boring, however, still has concerns:

“The SEC has more tools at its disposal to block spot bitcoin ETFs from coming to market. Chair Gensler doesn’t want to go down without a fight.”

Another Warning From Gensler 

Meanwhile, the current SEC chair, Gary Gensler, has issued another warning about investing in crypto. Reiterating his tired old arguments against the asset class and claims that they’re all securities, he said: 

“Those offering crypto asset investments/services may not be complying with applicable law, including federal securities laws.”

He added that investors in “crypto asset securities” should understand they may be deprived of key information and “other important protections” in connection with their investment.

Additionally, “fraudsters” and scams are still rife, and “these investments continue to be replete with fraud, bogus coin offerings, Ponzi & pyramid schemes, and outright theft,” he said.