Wen Bitcoin ETF? SEC Delays Roll In as Approval Window Closes

By Mat Di Salvo

Bitcoin hopefuls eagerly await the approval of a BTC ETF—but it looks like they're going to have to wait a little longer.

The price of Bitcoin last week passed $37,000—touching an 18-month high—when news dropped that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission had an eight-day window to approve all spot crypto exchange-traded product applications. Investors interpreted the news as bullish, seemingly thinking that a spot Bitcoin ETF could be imminent.

But that window has now closed and the long-awaited crypto vehicle has not yet dropped. Rather, the SEC has delayed decisions on pending applications, like it has done so many times in the past, and will now revisit them in the new year.

The SEC today delayed approval for a spot Bitcoin ETF from Global X, which had an initial deadline of November 21. It also delayed ruling on an application from asset manager Franklin Templeton for the same. Earlier this week, the Commission delayed an application from Hashdex for its own Bitcoin ETF.

Wall Street's biggest regulator has a pile of applications from a number of traditional finance titans—including BlackRock, VanEck, and WisdomTree—for a Bitcoin ETF. The investment vehicle, should it ever be approved, would allow buyers to gain exposure to BTC without the need to buy and store the crypto asset themselves.

Market observers have long believed that such a product would open the floodgates from Wall Street, leading to significant influx of capital into crypto markets. Blockchain data analysts at CryptoQuant believe it could lead to a $1 trillion boost to Bitcoin and other digital assets.

The first application for Bitcoin ETF was submitted 10 years ago, but the SEC has been reluctant to approve one, mostly citing potential market manipulation as the strongest risk factor.

But then the world's largest asset manager, BlackRock, entered the conversation, and prognostications have since changed. BlackRock rocked the crypto world when it filed for a Bitcoin ETF in June, and analysts now believe the market is closer than ever to finally getting a Bitcoin ETF in the United States.

Analysts from Bloomberg Intelligence say there’s a 90% chance one will get approved by January.

Whether that prediction holds true remains to be seen—but the odds of an approval today are now zero.

Edited by Guillermo Jimenez

Editor's note: This article was updated after publication to include the SEC's delayed decision on Franklin Templeton's application for a Bitcoin ETF.

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