Ether experienced a significant surge of 18% within a 24-hour period, fueled by fresh speculation surrounding the potential approval of spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by May 23, despite previous months of pessimism.
Notably, Bloomberg ETF analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart have observed indications that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is urging applicants to expedite their 19b-4 filings. As a result, they have adjusted their approval odds from 25% to 75%.
On the decentralized betting platform Polymarket, the odds of an approved spot Ether ETF have risen from 11% to 54%.
As of now, Ether (ETH) is valued at $3,625, marking a 16.1% increase since the news surfaced just over three hours ago. In the span of 24 hours, it has risen by 18%, according to CoinGecko.
This development comes shortly before the SEC’s decision on VanEck’s spot Ether ETF application on May 23.
However, Seyffart emphasized that approved 19b-4 filings must be accompanied by signed-off S-1 registration statements for the spot Ether ETFs to be launched. Even if the 19b-4 filings are approved this week, it could take weeks or even months for the S-1s to be finalized.
The concept of the SEC potentially approving the 19b-4 and S-1 filings in a two-part process was initially mentioned by Nate Geraci, the president of The ETF Store, on May 19.
In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin (BTC), Solana’s (SOL), and Dogecoin (DOGE) have also experienced price increases of 5.1%, 8.9%, and 9.2% respectively, according to CoinGecko.
Within the top 100 coins by market cap, only Ethereum-linked Uniswap (UNI), Lido DAO (LDO), and Lido Staked Ether (stETH) have outperformed Ether in the last 24 hours, as per CoinGecko.
The broader cryptocurrency market has seen a 7.8% surge in the last 24 hours, surpassing a market cap of $2.7 trillion for the first time since April 11.
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