ARK Make investments CEO and CIO Cathie Wooden stated on Aug. 7 that the SEC may approve a number of Bitcoin spot ETFs directly however will doubtless not achieve this by an upcoming deadline.
Wooden said throughout an interview with Bloomberg:
“I feel the [U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission], if it’s going to approve a Bitcoin ETF, will approve multiple directly….most of those primarily would be the similar, and it’ll come right down to advertising [and] speaking the message.”
Earlier than Wooden’s response, Bloomberg interviewers recommended that the SEC may put all ETFs on a “frequent clock” and place all ETF purposes on the identical stage.
Usually, the SEC would determine on every utility primarily based on the order of submitting, however the present scenario options quite a few comparable purposes.
ARK filed its utility for a spot Bitcoin ETF on Might 15. Later, BlackRock filed a extra distinguished utility on June 15, which led a number of different companies to file purposes. ARK then up to date its personal submitting on the finish of June so as to add a surveillance-sharing settlement with Coinbase in step with these different purposes.
Others have advocated for simultaneous Bitcoin ETF approvals primarily based on equity fairly than similarities between purposes. Grayscale, which is exclusive in that it goals to transform its current GBTC fund to an ETF, argues that the SEC shouldn’t give any agency an unfair benefit or decide winners and losers by approving particular purposes first.
Wooden famous that ARK was an early investor in Grayscale’s GBTC fund however couldn’t state whether or not the corporate would promote its GBTC holdings if that ETF conversion occurred.
Additionally in the course of the interview, Wooden described U.S. legislators’ makes an attempt to problem the SEC as a motive for optimism towards pending ETF proposals.
Resolution by Aug. 13 is unlikely
Based mostly on present deadlines, the SEC should approve or reject ARK’s utility by Aug. 13. Nonetheless, Bloomberg interviewers and Wooden each stated a delay is probably going. Wooden particularly said that it’s doubtless that the deadline will “come and go” with out occasion.
Separate stories from CNBC counsel that the SEC can delay deadlines for 240 days. Which means the SEC may postpone a choice on ARK’s utility till January 2024 and delay choices relating to different spot Bitcoin ETFs till March 2024.
The SEC has rejected all spot Bitcoin ETFs proposed, together with earlier purposes from ARK and its companion 21Shares. The company rejected one among ARK’s purposes in January 2023 and rejected one other in April 2022.
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