Spot Ethereum ETF in May and Bitcoin Price at $88K by the End of 2024? (research)

Bitwise research analyst Ryan Rasmussen has a 50% chance of spot Ethereum ETFs receiving approval from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in May.

Additionally, he expects Bitcoin to reach $88,000 by the end of 2024.

Ethereum ETF approval hangs in the balance

In a recent interview with Yahoo Finance, Rasmussen emphasized that ETFs are attracting interest from institutional investors ahead of their adoption date. He noted that this development will affect Ethereum's recent performance, as the second largest digital asset has seen more gains than BTC.

He also expressed concern about the market's readiness for the product in line with SEC filings.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs have previously faced rejection from the SEC to grayscale lawsuits. While the Bitwise researcher doesn't believe a lawsuit is needed for the Ethereum ETF, their approval in May is a coin toss, so it has a 50% chance of going either way.

Rasmussen mentioned the upcoming developments of Ethereum that will drive the expansion of the cryptocurrency. He emphasized that the March Denkun update is an update aimed at reducing transaction costs on the Ethereum network, thereby increasing adoption.

Rasmussen's view is supported by Bitwise Global Head of Research, Matt Hogan, who mentioned in May that he saw a 50% chance of approval. On the other hand, Polymarket website forecasts are less optimistic, with 44% approval of the Ethereum ETF.

Meanwhile, JPMorgan's Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou mentioned last month that they wouldn't put more than a 50% chance on an Ethereum ETF before May. Panigirtzoglou explained to the SEC that ETH would need to be classified as a commodity to ensure approval of the Ethereum ETF, which is unlikely in the short term.

The VanEck spot Ethereum application is expected to receive a decision from the SEC on May 23, with other decisions on similar documents expected to follow. In particular, the decision process is expected to mirror the Bitcoin ETF application.

Bitcoin may reach $88,000.

While Bitwise does not have an application for an Ethereum ETF on the spot, the spot Bitcoin ETF was approved in January. Rasmussen said he was pleased with the product's performance, adding that it had raised more than $1 billion in assets.

Rasmussen noted that Bitcoin is on track to reach an all-time high of at least $88,000 by the end of 2024, in line with Bitwise's earlier prediction.

In addition, he said that crypto is on its way to exit the weak market of 2022 and enter a multi-year bull cycle. On the other hand, Hougan sees Bitcoin surpassing $80,000 this year.