The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is set to reject a number of recent applications to create spot bitcoin ETFs because of possible negative consequences for investors. This is stated in letters sent to the regulator by the public organization Better Markets.
Better Markets Chief Legal Officer Stephen Hall said, that the crypto industry has developed a bad reputation. He noted the industry’s $2 trillion in losses, a number of enforcement proceedings against sector participants, and several bankruptcies.
Hall said the main beneficiaries of cryptocurrencies are criminals who use them for all sorts of illegal activities. He added that the SEC should consider the wave of bitcoin-ETF applications in this context.
Hall also explicitly urged the SEC to reject applications for relevant spot exchange-traded funds
“Our comment letters urge the SEC not to reverse its previous decisions to reject such applications and not to approve the eight proposed requests pending before the agency,” he said.
As a reminder, analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffarth believe the odds of approval for U.S. spot bitcoin-ETF applications have risen to 65%. At the beginning of the year, there was about a 1% chance of that happening.
Kathy Wood, head of Ark Invest, also said the SEC is likely to approve several applications for spot bitcoin ETFs at once.
Ark Invest CEO Kathy Wood also said the SEC is likely to approve several applications for spot bitcoin ETFs.
