Courts issued a new mandate concerning Grayscale’s spot Bitcoin ETF proposal on Oct. 23, followed by gains across multiple markets.
Grayscale aims to convert its GBTC fund to a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). Courts issued a judgment compelling the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to review the relevant proposal on Aug. 29. The matter attracted attention again this week as courts issued a formal mandate that further compels a review.
The latest mandate has coincided with growth among multiple assets. Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) — the subject of the above proceedings — is up 5.9% today.
The crypto market, meanwhile, has seen broader gains. Bitcoin (BTC) gained 7.6% in the 24-hour period ending 10 p.m. UTC on Aug 24. Bitcoin outperformed Ethereum (ETH), up 3.9% over the same time period, and the entire crypto market, up 5.4%.
Coinbase stock (COIN), meanwhile, gained 6.3%. Those gains may in part be attributed to a filing deadline in the company’s own legal case with the SEC or other broader developments concerning the crypto exchange. However, it should be noted that Coinbase is expected to take part in surveillance-sharing agreements for various planned ETFs, including BlackRock’s but excluding Grayscale’s proposed fund.
ETF approval is far from guaranteed
Recent spot Bitcoin ETFs are largely seen as promising due to Grayscale’s court victory, BlackRock’s pursuit of its own fund, and Coinbase’s potential role in some ETFs.
However, despite that general optimism, the SEC has not approved any such fund to date, and there are causes for doubt. First, the above filing concerning Grayscale compels the SEC to review, but not necessarily approve, the company’s proposal.
Elsewhere, reports of apparent progress on BlackRock’s ETF appear to be premature. The ticker for BlackRock’s planned ETF recently appeared on the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation’s (DTCC) website. Though that seemed to mark a step forward for the fund, the ticker later disappeared from listings.
One former SEC attorney — though no longer involved in the agency — has also suggested to Bloomberg that approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF is not a given.
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