The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reportedly contacted major U.S. exchanges, including the Nasdaq, the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), to update their applications for listing and trading spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) from asset managers. This comes ahead of a regulatory deadline on May 23, where the SEC will decide whether to approve or deny VanEck’s spot Ether ETF after a 240-day delay.
The SEC’s request for changes from the exchanges could indicate a potential regulatory approval. On May 20, two ETF analysts increased their chances of the SEC approving a spot ETF tied to Ether from 25% to 75% after hearing rumors that applicants should expedite their filings. The exchanges are required to file 19b-4s and S-1 registration statements with the SEC before any spot Ether ETFs can be listed.
If VanEck’s application is approved, it could pave the way for approvals for spot Ether ETFs from ARK 21Shares, BlackRock, Fidelity, Hashdex, and Invesco Galaxy. Fidelity has already amended its S-1 filing to state that the Ether tied to the investment vehicle will not be staked, suggesting that this requirement may be necessary for approval.
Previous SEC filings, public statements from Chair Gary Gensler, and reports of investigations had hinted at the possibility of the SEC denying spot Ether ETF applications, but that remains uncertain at this time. The commission began approving investment vehicles tied to ETH futures in October 2023 and spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs in January.
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