Four members of the U.S. Congress are urging SEC Chairman Gary Gensler to promptly approve the listing of spot Bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
In a letter dated September 26, U.S. Representatives Mike Flood, Wiley Nickel, Tom Emmer, and Ritchie Torres asserted that the SEC is showing bias against spot Bitcoin exchange-traded products. They referenced the legal precedent set by Grayscale Investments' court victory in its pursuit of Bitcoin ETFs. In that case, the court found the SEC's reasoning for approving investment products tied to Bitcoin futures to be "arbitrary and capricious."
The lawmakers argued that there is now "no reason to continue denying" spot crypto ETF applications after the Grayscale court ruling. They emphasized that regulated Bitcoin spot ETPs (Exchange Traded Products) would offer investors greater protection by providing a safer and more transparent way to access Bitcoin.
The letter also stated that Congress has a responsibility to ensure the SEC approves investment products that meet the criteria set by Congress. This request comes ahead of Gensler's scheduled appearance before the House Financial Services Committee to address SEC oversight issues.
As of the time of writing, lawmakers had not reached an agreement on government spending, potentially affecting the proceedings. To date, the SEC has not approved the listing of any spot Bitcoin ETFs. After the SEC's court loss to Grayscale in August, there were expectations that the commission might reconsider pending ETF applications. However, the SEC subsequently delayed decisions on ETFs from seven major firms: BlackRock, WisdomTree, Invesco Galaxy, Valkyrie, Bitwise, VanEck, and Fidelity.
