FOX Enterprise reporter Eleanor Terrett reported a variety of expectations concerning spot Ethereum ETF approvals on Jan. 23.
Notably, Terrett urged that the U.S. Securities and Trade Fee (SEC) is against approving a spot Ethereum ETF. She mentioned:
“One other supply tells me the road on the SEC at this very second is a ‘exhausting no’ and there’s at present ‘some inner resistance’ to the concept.”
Terrett didn’t state whether or not that supply is a member of the SEC itself or a member of an asset supervisor looking for approval from the SEC.
Terrett additionally famous that SEC commissioner Hester Peirce, recognized for her pro-cryptocurrency stances, has advocated for a extra easy determination course of. The SEC partly authorized spot Bitcoin ETFs as a result of one applicant, Grayscale, obtained a authorized victory, as SEC chair Gary Gensler defined in a press release. Peirce criticized that strategy in an interview with crypto information platform Coinage right this moment, as she mentioned that ETF approvals ought to contain “common method consideration” somewhat than court docket circumstances compelling motion.
Terrett concluded that additional indications of the SEC’s stance will emerge within the coming months because it turns into clear whether or not it engages with S-1 registration statements. The SEC sometimes posts notices of conferences with asset managers and exchanges on every ETF’s web page as they happen.
Asset managers look like optimistic
Regardless of resistance throughout the SEC, Terrett urged that the asset managers chargeable for issuing every fund are optimistic about approval.
Based on Terrett:
“[One] issuer with an ETH Spot ETF software says they’re assured the approval and clean launch of the Bitcoin spots will compel the [SEC] to approve ETH spot ETFs.”
One other unnamed issuer mentioned that they count on a spot Ethereum ETF to launch by the tip of the summer time due to the SEC’s earlier approval of Ethereum futures ETFs, and due to BlackRock’s sturdy ETF approval document.
That supply additionally cited the CFTC feedback suggesting Ethereum is a commodity, in addition to Ripple’s partial authorized victory towards the SEC, as components that might extra broadly forestall the SEC from labeling crypto belongings as securities. Nevertheless, it isn’t clear that these developments will immediately affect spot Ethereum ETF approvals within the coming months.
Public expectations round approval fluctuate. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas posits a 70% likelihood that an spot Ethereum ETF shall be authorized in Could, whereas JP Morgan govt Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou has predicted a 50% likelihood of approval. Polymarket odds recommend a 53% likelihood of approval.