The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed the deadline for a decision on Fidelity’s proposed spot ETF to March 5.
According to Thursday’s filing, the SEC “finds it appropriate to establish a longer period for action on the proposed rule change,” so that it has “adequate time to consider the proposed rule change and the issues raised therein.”
Bloomberg Intelligence ETF Analyst James Seyphart He said He added that the delay was “completely expected,” adding that “the really important dates are late May in my view.”
Fidelity filed for its own spot Ethereum ETF in November 2023, joining the likes of BlackRock, Ark Invest/21shares, and VanEck.
Seyfart’s colleague Eric Balchunas expressed confidence that the ETF would be approved in 2024 earlier this month, citing a 70% chance of approval by May. Speaking on Rug Radio’s FOMO Hour show, Balchunas said the SEC’s prior approval of Ethereum futures ETFs has put the regulator in a bind, as its approval of Bitcoin futures ETFs has led to a court order to review the application of… Grayscale spot bitcoin ETFs.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last week approved several Bitcoin exchange-traded fund applications, with Chairman Gary Gensler admitting that circumstances had “changed” following the court order.
“In fact, you have to agree to spot an Ethereum (ETF), otherwise you’ll get sued again for the exact same reason,” Balchunas said during an appearance on Rug Radio late last week.
In his statement after approving spot bitcoin ETFs, SEC Chairman Gensler went out of his way to state that “the Commission’s action today is limited to ETFs containing a single non-security commodity, namely Bitcoin,” and that “in no circumstances should “It may indicate the Commission’s desire to approve listing standards for crypto-asset securities.” “The approval does not indicate anything about the Commission’s views regarding the status of other cryptoassets under the federal securities laws,” Gensler added.
During his tenure as SEC chief, Gensler repeatedly declined to clarify whether the regulator was taking this into consideration. Ethereum Security or commodity.
Before taking his position at the regulatory body, while teaching a course on blockchain at MIT, Gensler stated that Ethereum is “not a security” in the eyes of the SEC, stating that it considers the cryptocurrency to be “sufficiently decentralized” that it does not qualify. Gensler appears to be echoing former SEC corporate finance director William Hinman in his oft-cited “Decentralize Enough” speech in June 2018.
Gensler’s colleague, Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman Rustin Behnam, expressed the view that Ethereum should be considered a commodity.