The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has opted to postpone its decision regarding Invesco Galaxy's application for an ether spot exchange-traded fund (ETF). This delay, outlined in a filing on May 6, grants the SEC an additional 60 days, extending the deadline to July 5. The SEC justified this extension by stating the need for ample time to thoroughly assess the proposed rule change and the associated considerations.
Notably, the SEC has consistently deferred decisions on applications from all eight potential Ethereum ETF issuers, including prominent names like BlackRock, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton, Hashdex, and Ark 21Shares. Such delays align with analysts' expectations, reflecting a trend within the regulatory landscape.
Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart highlighted May 23 as a pivotal date, particularly regarding the VanEck Ethereum ETF application, deeming it the sole deadline of significance. In a notable shift, Eric Balchunas, a senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, revised his outlook on SEC approval probabilities for ETFs downward to 35%, down from the previously estimated 50%. This adjustment was driven by diminished confidence in the regulator's likelihood to greenlight VanEck's proposal before the looming deadline.
Despite prevailing skepticism among ETF analysts, Ethereum proponent Anthony Sassano maintains optimism regarding regulatory approval potential before VanEck's cutoff date. Sassano anticipates a potential approval of an Ethereum futures ETF product in 2023, citing a significant meeting held on March 9 involving the SEC, crypto asset manager Grayscale, and cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase as a compelling indicator that the SEC may yet approve such applications.
