- The SEC made a big announcement on spot Ether ETFs.
- The regulator cleared the ETFs to proceed to the next stage of approval.
- Issuers have started filing their respective S-1 forms.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved applications from Nasdaq, CBOE, and NYSE to list spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs). This marks a surprising pivot for the regulator and a big win for the industry, which until Monday had been expecting a negative response.
The approval comes after the securities watchdog on May 20 asked prospective issuers of the ETFs to update their 19b-4 forms. The forms have since been published on the regulator’s official website and given “relatively high” feedback.
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According to the SEC’s document, the updated 19b-4 forms have received the regulator’s nod, paving the way for the approval of S-1 registration statements, which Bloomberg’s James Seyffart cautions “is going to take time.
This means the Ether spot ETFs of nine issuers, including Blackrock, VanEck, and ARK Investments/21Shares, will not begin trading tomorrow. In the meantime, lawmakers called for the SEC to consider other crypto-related ETF applications that might be filed in the future.
Other Crypto ETFs to Follow Suit?
This development follows a bipartisan letter by a group of House lawmakers on May 22 urging the SEC to apply “the same principles set forth in the approval of the spot Bitcoin ETPs” as it reviewed pending spot Ether ETFs.
Notably, the lawmakers asked the Commission to “maintain a consistent and equitable approach” when reviewing upcoming applications for “other digital asset-backed ETFs.” According to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, this could be a pivot in the U.S.
“It is interesting to me that they say "other digital assets" vs only mentioning Ether. Will be interesting to see how far and how quickly the ETF industry pushes envelope (which is something its good at). Wouldn't be surprised if they pounce on SEC vulnerability and file all kinds of coins (kinda like they have in Europe) to test the limit,” Balchunas wrote on X.
Commenting further on the letter, Balchunas said crypto ETFs have started their march into the mainstream.
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