The SEC is finally getting involved with Bitcoin ETF applicants: Cathy Wood

After years of delay and after removing the stone slabs of the highly anticipated Bitcoin ETF, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will begin to have a more productive dialogue with prospective applicants about the product.

One such prospect is Kathy Wood, chief executive of Arc Invest, who said on Monday that her firm had noticed a positive “change in behavior” from the regulator.

Warming up to the Bitcoin ETF

In an interview with CNBC on Monday, Arch explained his response to questions from the SEC last week, which sought clarification on what risks ETFs could pose to investors and the steps Ark is taking to mitigate some of them. They.

In partnership with 21Shares, Arc is one of twelve investment managers competing to launch a Bitcoin ETF in the US, including firms such as BlackRock, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton and others.

“The fact that the SEC chose to ask questions is a change in behavior,” Wood said. “So, I think there is growing hope that one – or a number – of Bitcoin ETFs will be approved.

Wood is not the only one to notice the change. On Tuesday, Fidelity filed an updated prospectus with the SEC on its Bitcoin ETF application, addressing the same questions raised on Ark. Some of the new details include Bitcoin hard fork mechanics, Bitcoin custody arrangements, GAAP compliance, Bitcoin power consumption and more.

Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seifert said of the update: “Further confirmation that Bitcoin ETF issuers are communicating with the SEC regarding changes/amendments required by the SEC.

The next day, Mike Novogratz – Galaxy Digital's CEO – predicted that his and/or other ETF applications would be green-lit by the SEC by the end of the year, highlighting how discussions with the SEC are all moving in the right direction. “

“When you go to polling time and what you ask [it] It all looks different than the whole,” Novogratz said in a CNBC interview.

The case of Greyscale

Acting in the favor of petitioners is the SEC's latest court bankruptcy for Grayscale – the world's largest Bitcoin fund. In August, the justices unanimously ruled that the agency's denial of grayscale's conversion to spot ETFs was “arbitrary and unconscionable” because it had already approved similar, cash-based futures products.

As of Friday, the SEC's window to appeal the decision is now closed. Therefore, the court is poised to instruct the SEC on how to handle Greyscale's application, which could result in absolute approval.

Some have suggested that the SEC may respond to the Greyscale bankruptcy by revoking its earlier approval of Bitcoin futures ETFs, although experts contacted by CryptoPotato consider this outcome unlikely.

Free from greyscale, Ark's ETF application is the first to require a firm and final decision to approve or disapprove by January 10.

“Multiple Bitcoin ETFs can be approved at the same time,” Wood said.