Gary Gensler, the Chair of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), has indicated a potential delay in final approvals for asset managers looking to offer spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on exchanges.
During an interview on CNBC on June 5, Gensler mentioned that the SEC’s approval process for spot Ether ETFs would “take some time,” suggesting a slow approach to signing off on S-1 registration statements. While the SEC recently approved 19b-4 filings from various companies including VanEck, BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, Franklin Templeton, ARK 21Shares, Invesco Galaxy, and Bitwise, the final green light for listing and trading ETFs on U.S. exchanges may take several months.
Gensler also commented on the activities of cryptocurrency firms, noting that they were operating in ways that traditional exchanges are not allowed to, indicating that the commission’s enforcement actions stance is unlikely to change under his leadership. Despite lawsuits against Ripple, Coinbase, Binance, and Kraken, the SEC faced setbacks when a Utah judge ordered the closure of one of its regional offices and a payment of $1.8 million due to “bad faith conduct” in court.
Although Gensler hinted at a potential delay in spot Ether ETF approvals, the SEC has started the process towards listing shares on exchanges. The recent approvals for spot Ether ETFs came after the SEC’s approval of several spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETF applications, making it a first in the industry. Prior to Gensler’s remarks, Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas had predicted a potential launch date of July 4 for spot Ether ETFs.
Unlike spot Bitcoin ETFs, which required a vote from the five commissioners, spot Ether ETFs were approved by the SEC’s Trading and Markets Division. Gensler is expected to remain as SEC Chair until 2026, while the term of SEC Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw officially ended on June 5. As of now, U.S. President Joe Biden has not announced whether he will nominate a replacement or retain Crenshaw.
In other news, Ether ETFs are anticipated to launch in June, Binance France CEO CZ has left the company, and other updates can be found in Hodler’s Digest from May 26 to June 1.