An approval from the SEC would make the VanEck Bitcoin ETF the first open Bitcoin exchange-traded product in the US but the SEC continues to delay this.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday postponed its decision to approve the VanEck Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) by 45 days. The ETF proposition made by the investment fund manager has been under review from the regulatory board since mid-March this year. This is the second time the SEC has extended its evaluation window.
Typically, the regulator takes 45 days to review applications. Thereafter, it either announces its decision or delays it for up to a maximum of 240 days. SEC approval could make the VanEck Bitcoin ETF the very first open Bitcoin exchange-traded product in the US but the SEC continues to delay this.
Still, in the same filing, the SEC requested public comment on the Bitcoin ETF’s susceptibility to market manipulation. The regulator also asked if there were any significant changes in the regulatory aspect of bitcoin ETF since 2016 when it started gaining popularity.
“In rejecting numerous bitcoin ETF applications, the SEC has continually stated concerns over fraud and manipulation in the underlying bitcoin spot market,” Nathan Geraci, president of the ETF Store said. “The SEC is worried they don’t have proper surveillance over crypto exchanges and, therefore, can’t ensure adequate investor protections are in place,” he added.
VanEck Bitcoin ETF
A month after VanEck’s initial application, Gary Gensler became the new SEC chief following a majority vote from the US Senate. New hope came to ETF supporters since Gensler had been fairly bullish on digital assets. The former Commodity and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) chair also taught courses on blockchain technology at MIT. However, VanEck’s ETF approval remains pending.
Previously, all applications for a Bitcoin ETF have been rejected, with the SEC continuously citing market manipulation among a host of other concerns. Nevertheless, its demand in the crypto community continues to rise especially because it would bring deep liquidity, lower costs, tax efficiency, and the ability to purchase small ETF positions.
In recent years, various companies have filed for a Bitcoin ETF application including WisdomTree and Valkyrie. This is after their initial applications in 2019 and 2020 were rejected. Moreover, companies such as Grayscale even went on to post several job listings for ETF specialists.
Early this year, Canada made several ETF approvals and three of them are already trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The very first ETF nearly reached $500 million in assets within the first few days under management.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin price was at $38,872.45 at writing time, having dropped 3.6% in the last 24-hours. On Monday, the cryptocurrency rose as high as $41,020 after its near 30% drop from a mid-April high of $65,000.
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