- SEC is considering applications from Hashdex and Franklin Templeton
- It has to approve or reject the applications within a maximum of 240 days
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced a delay in its decisions on VanEck’s and ARK’s applications for an Ethereum-based exchange-traded fund (ETF). The regulator is considering applications from Hashdex and Franklin Templeton for spot crypto ETFs, however.
Hashdex has filed for a spot ether ETF, while Franklin Templeton has filed for a bitcoin ETF.
Frequent delays
The SEC has to approve or reject the application within a maximum of 240 days from the date the filing appears in the Federal Register. If the regulator takes advantage of the maximum term, the decision can be expected in May next year. There are a few intermediate deadlines, when it can ask for additional feedback from the public and delay the final decision even more.
The SEC often delays such decisions, taking advantage of the full 240 days. Initially, a decision on multiple ETF applications from industry giants like BlackRock, Bitwise, WisdomTree, Wise Origin, Invesco Galaxy, VanEck, and Valkyrie Digital Assets was expected in mid-October 2023.
Race for first ether ETF is on
As a potential federal government shutdown looms ahead, the SEC has extended its decision deadlines for spot bitcoin ETF applications from Ark 21Shares and Global X.
Earlier this month, the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) filed two 19b-4 applications for a decision by the SEC, marking the beginning of the race for the first spot Ethereum ETF in the US.
CBOE requested that VanEck and ARK 21Shares ether ETF investment products become available on its BZX Exchange. 21 Shares and ARK Invest joined forces to file an S-1 to the regulator on September 6.
Grayscale decision set a precedent
In January this year, Grayscale retaliated after SEC barred its request to transform Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into a spot bitcoin ETF. The company filed an appeal, terming the regulator’s argument “fundamentally unreasonable" and “illogical.”
The court of appeal ruled that the SEC must reevaluate its rejection of the bid in August, citing inconsistencies in its approval of similar bitcoin products.
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