SEC pushes back on BlackRock, Fidelity spot Ethereum ETF proposals
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has delayed its decision on whether to approve BlackRock and Fidelity Spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
In separate March 4 filings, the SEC announced it would delay a decision on applications from BlackRock for the iShares Ethereum Trust and Fidelity for the Ethereum Fund.
The SEC first delayed its decision on BlackRock's and Fiedlite's Ether ETF applications in January, shortly after approving spot bitcoin (BTC) ETFs to go live. The SEC can delay its decision up to three times before making a final decision.
The SEC's delay came as no surprise, given that market analysts and ETF analysts had speculated that the SEC would decide to approve or deny ETFs only when the first deadline arrived in May.
May 23 — the application deadline for VanEck's spot ETH ETF — is “the only day that matters” when it comes to Ethereum ETFs, according to Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seifert, who previously posted on Feb. 7 for X.
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Meanwhile, Ether's price continues to be driven by broad market enthusiasm for potential approval, posting gains of 56.7% over the past month. It is not affected by today's SEC delay decision.
At the time of publication, ETH is changing hands at $3,754, up 13% per week, according to CoinGecko.
However, not everyone is convinced that the spot Ether ETF will be as valuable as the spot bitcoin ETF — with BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin ETF holding a staggering $10 billion in assets under management alone.
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Blachunas said he and colleague Seifert will soon have a formal exposure to ETH ETFs, but described the yet-to-be-approved funds as “small potatoes” compared to Bitcoin funds.
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