U.S. regulator postpones ruling on Bitcoin ETF yet again
KEY INSIGHTS
• U.S. regulator delays approval of Bitcoin ETF once again
• It was expected of the regulator to be more open minded this year, however it didn’t go as assumed
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has delayed a decision on Bitcoin ETF, reportedly on Wednesday, June 16. This is not their first time postponing the decision, and Bitcoin enthusiasts have long been sour about the SEC’s dilly-dally behaviour. The previous time when it came to making a decision on ETF provider VanEck’s proposed Bitcoin product since April, SEC required more time to evaluate and analyse the same. This time the exchange commission asked for more comments and insights on whether or not it should permit the proposed product to trade on public markets.
It was anticipated earlier this year that the regulator will be more open minded since SEC Chair Gary Gensler came in charge – he taught classes on digital assets at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. However, concerns regarding lack of oversight on crypto exchanges have raised since April.
The SEC wants to comprehend if the proposed ETF will be vulnerable to manipulation. They further sought to understand if a single market would participate in buying or selling huge amounts of Bitcoin without significant impact on the market.
Some of the major questions they have put forward are:
• Will the trust and shares related with the ETF be receptive to manipulation?
• Whether CBOE’s aim is to put a stop to fraud and manipulation?
• How transparent is Bitcoin?
• Has regulation of the Bitcoin market changed considerably in the last five years?
• What opinions do critics or analysts have on the size and regulation of CME’s Bitcoin futures contracts?
The SEC has received around a dozen Bitcoin ETF proposals over the last 8 years, but has not approved any because of concerns over investor protection. The commission also postponed decisions on Kryptoin’s and WisdomTree’s WETF, +0.30% proposed ETFs in the recent years.
