The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reportedly reached out to major U.S. exchanges regarding updates to an asset manager's application for listing and trading a spot Ethereum (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF). As per a Reuters report on May 21, SEC officials contacted Nasdaq, Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) to request changes to existing spot Ethereum ETFs before the regulatory deadline of May 23. This deadline marks the committee's decision point on whether to approve or reject VanEck's spot ETH ETF application after a 240-day delay.
The SEC's request for updates from U.S. exchanges could be interpreted as a potential signal of regulatory approval. Notably, two ETF analysts raised the likelihood of the SEC approving an ether-linked spot ETF from 25% to 75% after indications suggested that applicants should expedite their 19b-4 filings. Before any spot Ethereum ETF can be listed, exchanges are required to file 19b-4s and S-1 registration statements with the SEC.
Should VanEck's application receive SEC approval, it could pave the way for similar spot ether ETFs from other entities like ARK 21Shares, BlackRock, Fidelity, Hashdex, and Invesco Galaxy. Fidelity, for instance, has adjusted its S-1 filing to indicate that ether associated with the investment vehicle will not be pledged, potentially signaling a necessary condition for approval.
Previous SEC filings, public statements from Chairman Gary Gensler, and investigative reports have hinted at the possibility of the commission rejecting an Ethereum ETF spot application. At the time of publication, this outcome remained a possibility. The committee's approval process for investment vehicles linked to ETH futures and spot Bitcoin began in October 2023 for ETFs slated for January.
