The launch of spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States, which was anticipated to happen on July 2, has been postponed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Bloomberg analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart have reported that the SEC has requested resubmissions of the S-1 forms from the prospective ETF issuers, delaying the launch until mid-July or later.
The SEC provided comments on the S-1 forms and set a deadline of July 8 for resubmissions. Balchunas suggests that this revised timeline could push the launch of spot Ethereum ETFs to mid-to-late July. Nate Geraci, president of ETF Store, predicted that the SEC would approve the issuers for trading within 14-21 days, considering the minor revisions made in the last round of S-1 filings. While the exact timeline remains uncertain, the SEC has hinted at a potential launch this summer.
Earlier in June, Balchunas had anticipated an early July window for the ETF launch based on the limited commentary from SEC staff on the S-1 filings of the applicants. The approval of the S-1 forms is the second step in the two-step process required for the ETFs to become operational. The first step involved the SEC’s approval of the issuers’ 19b-4 forms in May, which was granted to eight ETF bidders on May 23.
Unlike the 19b-4 forms, the S-1 forms do not have a specific deadline, and issuers are now dependent on the SEC’s review and approval timeline. SEC Chair Gary Gensler confirmed that the approval process for spot Ether ETFs is progressing smoothly. The SEC has already approved a rule change allowing major issuers like BlackRock, Fidelity, 21Shares, Grayscale, Franklin Templeton, VanEck, iShares, and Invesco to participate in the process. Certain issuers, including VanEck, have filed 8-A forms in preparation for listing on exchanges by July 8.
However, Gensler stated that the process of listing spot Ether ETFs on stock exchanges could take several months and might not happen until September. Gensler emphasized that the timeline is dependent on the response times of the applicants.