The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed its decision on whether to approve spot Ethereum ARK 21Shares and VanEck Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) applications.
In a notice filed on September 27, the SEC stated that it would set a later deadline for determining whether to permit a proposed rule change allowing the listing of VanEck and ARK 21Shares' spot ETH ETFs on the Cboe BZX exchange. The SEC cited a lack of public comments on both proposals and extended the deadlines for further delays or decisions to December 25 and December 26, respectively.
The SEC explained that it needs more time to thoroughly assess the proposed rule changes and the associated issues. This delay coincided with Nasdaq Stock Market's submission of proposed rule changes to the SEC for its hybrid ETH ETF, which combines spot ether holdings and futures contracts.
On September 27, similar rule change proposals were submitted to NYSE Arca for the Grayscale Ethereum Futures Trust, the Hashdex Bitcoin Futures ETF, and the Cboe BZX Exchange for the Franklin Bitcoin ETF.
The SEC had previously announced on September 26 that it would extend the deadline for determining the approval of spot Bitcoin ETF applications from ARK 21Shares and Global X. This action deferred the final decision on the ARK 21Shares ETF until January.
In August, Cathie Wood, the founder and CEO of ARK Investment Management, speculated that if the SEC approved spot ETFs, it might consider allowing multiple listings simultaneously to prevent any one company from gaining an advantage in the market. This was after Grayscale Investments won a legal battle with the SEC regarding its spot Bitcoin ETF application, which may now be under review.
The SEC has never approved the launch of a spot cryptocurrency ETF in the United States to date. However, it has permitted the listing of cryptocurrency-linked futures ETFs and leveraged Bitcoin futures ETFs. The next deadline for spot crypto ETF applications from companies like BlackRock, WisdomTree, Invesco Galaxy, Valkyrie, Bitwise, and Fidelity is set for October.
