Bitcoin exchange-traded funds are unlikely to be introduced to the stock market in the near future, as the SEC denies bitcoin ETF for the second time in a month.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has refused SolidX proposal to trade its Bitcoin Trust on the New York Stock Exchange Arca platform. This is the second bitcoin ETF this month that has been denied by the agency.
Earlier this month, the SEC denied the Winklevoss twins’ COIN ETF citing regulatory uncertainty and the risk of fraud as the reasons for rejection. Last week, however, the CBOE Holdings Inc’s Bats exchange asked the agency to review its decision.
SolidX bitcoin ETF was denied for almost the same reasons to that of the COIN ETF. According to the SEC, the Bitcoin Trust can’t be listed on the exchange because of regulatory issues and lack of surveillance sharing agreements.
The SEC has announced its decision in a filing issued on the agency’s website on Tuesday. “The Commission is disapproving this proposed rule change because it does not find the proposal to be consistent with Section 6(b)(5) of the Exchange Act, which requires, among other things, that the rules of a national securities exchange be designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices and to protect investors and the public interest,” the document reads.
“The Commission believes that, in order to meet this standard, an exchange that lists and trades shares of commodity-trust exchange-traded products (“ETPs”) must, in addition to other applicable requirements, satisfy two requirements that are dispositive in this matter. First, the exchange must have surveillance-sharing agreements with significant markets for trading the underlying commodity or derivatives on that commodity. And second, those markets must be regulated.
Still, there is one more bitcoin ETF awaiting a decision from the SEC. Grayscale Investment, managed by Barry Silbert’s Digital Currency Group, filed an application to list its Bitcoin Investment Trust o the exchange last year.
Bitcoin price escalated to more than $1,300 this month in view of the speculation regarding the SolidX bitcoin ETF approval, but declined slightly following the announcement. The price of the digital currency also dropped when the SEC unveiled its decision on the Winklevoss’s proposal three weeks ago, but later recovered to over $1,200.
A few days ago, Coinbase announced the launch of margin trading on bitcoin, litecoin and ethereum on its GDAX platform. The exchange expects that the new feature will attract new institutional clients, reducing volatility and driving the growth of the bitcoin industry. The move is part of the company’s goal to build a more transparent and fair market and become the most trusted cryptocurrency exchange for professional traders.
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