VanEck CEO predicts high likelihood of Ether ETFs facing rejection in May

The CEO of investment firm VanEck has expressed doubt that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in May. In an interview with CNBC on April 9, Jan van Eck stated that his firm’s spot Ethereum ETF application will most likely be rejected. Van Eck’s firm was the first to file for a spot Ether ETF in the US, along with Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest. Both applications are awaiting a final decision on May 23 and May 24, respectively. CoinShares CEO Jean-Marie Mognetti shares a similar pessimistic view, stating that he does not expect any approvals to be granted this year. These comments follow the SEC’s inaction on seven pending applications for spot Ether ETFs. Several commentators, including Senior Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, have pointed to the lack of communication between the regulator and prospective fund issuers as a significant reason why an ETF approval in May seems increasingly unlikely. VanEck’s Ether ETF application is scheduled for a final decision on May 23, along with six other fund issuers, including Grayscale, BlackRock, and Fidelity, who are also awaiting approval. Balchunas has revised his odds for an Ether ETF approval by May from 70% to 35%. He reiterated his position on the pending approvals and echoed Van Eck’s sentiments in a post on X on April 9. In March, the analyst reduced his approval odds to 35%. Fellow ETF analyst James Seyffart shared a similar view, stating that the lack of comments or interactions from the SEC is a negative sign. He added that there is no reason for the SEC to have done nothing for months when they were aware of the pending applications. VanEck’s spot Bitcoin ETF, known as HODL, is the fifth largest of the ten newly launched funds (excluding Grayscale). It has attracted $461.7 million in inflows since its launch in mid-January, according to Farside Investors data. Jan van Eck commented on the success of Bitcoin ETFs, describing Bitcoin as a maturing asset and noting that there are still many investors who have yet to gain exposure to the asset.