In an unsurprising turn of events, the US Securities and Exchange Commission has delayed its decision on two spot Bitcoin ETF applications filed by asset managers WisdomTree and One River. The decision comes barely a week after the regulator rejected spot Bitcoin ETF applications filed by NYDIG and Global X.
Per the notices issued by SEC Monday, the deadline to announce the decision on the WisdomTree and One River Bitcoin ETFs have been extended to May 15th and April 3rd, respectively.
So far, the financial regulator has delayed or disapproved all the Bitcoin ETF proposals it has received to date. WisdomTree, whose first spot Bitcoin ETF application was denied in December last year, submitted the proposal again after making some changes in the first filing.
In both the filings, the SEC noted:
“The Commission finds that it is appropriate to designate a longer period within which to
take action on the proposed rule change so that it has sufficient time to consider the proposed
rule change and any comments received.”
On the contrary, the regulator has only shown marginal hesitation when it comes to approving Bitcoin futures ETFs. Currently, Bitcoin futures ETFs of Valkyrie, ProShares, and VanEck are listed on Cboe. However, there are certain exceptions since the SEC recently postponed the verdict on “ARK 21Shares Bitcoin Futures Strategy ETF” and “Teucrium Bitcoin Futures Fund.”
