As the crypto market awaits a regulatory green light on spot Ethereum ETFs, amended filings from several asset managers suggested the approval process continues apace.
VanEck was first to submit an amended registration statement for its spot Ethereum ETF Monday, unveiling a new name for its product: The VanEck Ethereum Trust. That move was followed by 21Shares, which submitted a new registration for its spot Ethereum ETFs as well.
Grayscale then joined in with two amended filings of its own, one for the $28 billion Grayscale Ethereum Trust, and another for a “mini” equivalent intended to be a lower-cost alternative.
Franklin Templeton subsequently filed an amended filing for its spot Ethereum ETF, followed by Fidelity and BlackRock.
None of Monday's filings included details on their planned fees, which Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said the SEC had yet to require. He suggested there would be one more round of updates with fees included, “and then it's go time.”
Because the SEC asked for the S-1s on July 8th but told issuers the fee wasn't nec yet. They will give guidance back to issuers soon along with the game plan. Then the docs come will come back with fees (and every other blank) filled it and then it's Go time. https://t.co/S4u8HaMckh
— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) July 8, 2024
“If you forced me gun-to-head style to give my best guess for date, I'd go with July 18th,” he added.
In terms of alterations, some regulatory language regarding custody was snipped from VanEck’s registration statement. A scrapped section outlined how Ethereum withdrawals would be processed through the entity that VanEck has chosen to safeguard assets for its fund.
Other minor changes mirrored those made by Bitwise last week, which detailed the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) stance on compliance in the crypto market. The section explicitly states that SEC Chair Gary Gensler believes investors using crypto exchanges aren't “adequately protected,” and certain activities may implicate securities laws.
“The chair expressed a need for the SEC to have additional authorities to prevent transactions, products, and platforms from ‘falling between regulatory cracks,’” VanEck’s filing stated. “The chair called for federal legislation centering on digital asset trading.”
In the amended registration statement from 21Shares, the firm included similar disclosure language on the SEC’s regulatory efforts, among other minute details.
“Nothing to see here,” Balchunas wrote Balchunas on Twitter (aka X) of 21Shares’ filing.
Finally, a new section within Grayscale’s amended filing for its “mini” ETF makes clear that none of the product’s Ethereum will be staked, referring to the process through which Ethereum tokens are delegated to the network in exchange for rewards.
None of the applications before the SEC intend to touch Ethereum staking. Prior to the regulator’s approvals, some applicants removed the language from their proposals.
Though the SEC approved several key filings for spot Ethereum ETFs in May, the SEC still needs to approve S-1s from eight asset managers. Previously, Gensler said the approval process is dependent on asset managers’ abilities to provide full disclosures.
Alongside Bitwise’s amended filing last week, Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart wrote that the trading of spot Ethereum ETFs may soon be imminent. Whether this week or the next, he forecast that the products’ launches aren’t too far out on the horizon.
Meanwhile, the price of Ethereum has given up virtually all the gains it saw with the approval of such products. Peaking around $4,000 in late May alongside the SEC's action, Ethereum's price has since drifted below $3,000 amid broader headwinds in the crypto market.
Edited by Ryan Ozawa. This article has been updated to add Fidelity and BlackRock updates.