The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed its decision on the approval or rejection of Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) proposed by BlackRock's iShares Ethereum Trust and Fidelity Ethereum Fund, as stated in a separate filing on March 4. This delay marks a continuation of the regulatory review process for these ETF applications.
Initially, the SEC deferred its decision on BlackRock and Fidelity's Ethereum ETF applications in January, following the approval of a series of spot Bitcoin ETFs. The SEC has the authority to postpone its decision multiple times before reaching a final verdict, which has been the case with these Ethereum ETF applications.
The SEC's decision to delay the approval or rejection of the BlackRock and Fidelity Ethereum ETFs aligns with expectations from market commentators and ETF analysts, who have anticipated that the SEC would defer its decision until the final deadline in May. Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart emphasized the significance of May 23, the deadline for VanEck's spot ETH ETF applications, as a pivotal date for Ethereum ETFs.
Despite the delay in the SEC's decision, the price of ether (ETH) remains buoyant, reflecting broader market optimism surrounding the potential approval of Ethereum ETFs. Over the past month, ether's price has surged by 56.7%, underscoring investor enthusiasm for this digital asset class. This sentiment was not materially impacted by the SEC's recent delay announcement.
Currently, ether is trading at $3,754, showing a 13% increase for the week according to data from CoinGecko. However, some analysts remain skeptical about the potential impact of a spot ether ETF compared to a spot Bitcoin ETF. While BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin ETF alone boasts a significant $10 billion in assets under management, analysts like Eric Blachunas suggest that Ethereum ETFs, although anticipated, may not have the same immediate impact as Bitcoin funds. Blachunas characterizes the yet-to-be-approved Ethereum funds as relatively minor players in the ETF landscape.
