During a discussion on the American television show CNBC’s Squawk Box, ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood applauded the effort of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over the numerous spot Bitcoin ETF applications that have been submitted to its office.
It is common knowledge that the U.S. regulator has never given its approval to any spot Bitcoin ETF application. Grayscale was once a victim of this sentiment as the SEC rejected its application to convert its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) ETF to a physically backed product. It was not until recently that a federal judge ordered the regulator to reconsider Grayscale’s application.
According to the judge, the SEC failed to recognize the “obvious financial and mathematical relationship between the spot and futures markets.”
Over and again, the SEC has constantly raised concerns of market manipulation, fraud and investors’ unsecured exposure as the reasons behind its rejection of the previous filings. Surprisingly, Wood mentioned that this was not the case this time around as the SEC was more receptive towards their applications.
Rather than outrightly reject the spot BTC ETF filings from the likes of BlackRock, Fidelity, WisdomTree, Invesco, and Valkyrie, she confirmed that the regulator took time to ask the applicants questions that were focused on the protection of investors. The SEC went as far as encouraging the potential spot Bitcoin ETF candidates to make crucial amendments, like the surveillance sharing agreement, in their filing.
The ARK Invest CEO stated that she was quite impressed by the questions asked, much of which were very technical. In her opinion, she believes that the “open-mindedness” being exhibited by the SEC is a positive signal that this may be the time for a spot Bitcoin ETF approval.
Her disposition further underscores the many predictions and optimistic statements that have been making the rounds in the broader crypto ecosystem. Bloomberg ETF analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart believe that there is a 90% chance that the regulator will greenlight the twelve applications on its desk.
Galaxy Digital’s CEO Mike Novogratz is also very confident about the spot BTC ETF applications getting the much-needed approvals this year.
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