Executive: Ethereum ETF Launch is Imminent
11 Jul, 2024 ● Coin news
A lineup of eight U.S.-based spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) is moving closer to launch, but the exact date remains uncertain, according to Bitwise’s chief compliance officer Katherine Dowling.
“We’re seeing in the S-1 amendments that there are fewer and fewer issues that are being vetted back and forth between issuers and the SEC,” Dowling told Bloomberg on July 9.
He continued: “So that points all signs in the direction that we are close. We’re close to the finish line on the launch.”
Form S-1s provide details about the issuer and the securities they plan to offer.
Once approved, the products can be launched.
US Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler recently suggested that the spot Ether ETFs might launch sometime in the summer.
“Everyone has a different definition of summer. It’s been a little bit of a long, hot summer for the issuers waiting,” Dowling said.
Several spot Ether ETF issuers have been waiting for six weeks for their S-1 registration statements to be signed off by the SEC after the regulator approved several 19b-4 filings on May 23.
The issuers submitted their amended S-1s in early July following initial feedback from the securities regulator.
Bitwise’s chief investment officer Matt Hougan speculated that the spot Ether ETFs could attract up to $15 billion in inflows within the first 18 months of trading, a figure similar to what spot Bitcoin ETFs have garnered since their launch six months ago.
Dowling also mentioned that the SEC has been open to discussions about non-Bitcoin and Ether products.
“We’ve actually dialogued with the SEC about the possibility of what’s coming down the pipe with new products,” Dowling said.
He continued: “I think our communication with the SEC about the prospects for these products has actually been quite welcoming.”
On July 8, the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) filed applications to list spot Solana (SOL) ETFs on behalf of VanEck and 21Shares.
However, Dowling is not confident that a third spot cryptocurrency ETF will be approved under Gensler’s leadership.
Senior Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas expressed a similar view on July 9, suggesting that a spot Solana ETF application would likely be “dead on arrival” if Biden were re-elected and Gensler remained as the head of the financial regulator.
Sources:
https://cointelegraph.com/news/ethereum-etf-launch-close-to-finish-line-bitwise-cco
