SEC Seeks Public Consultation for Bitcoin ETFs, Metaverse ETF Price Battle Emerges

Although the U.S. SEC has been rejecting Bitcoin ETFs ON and OFF, the possibilities aren’t ending yet! The securities regulator is now reaching out to the public seeking advice on whether the exchange-traded funds linked directly to the price of Bitcoin i.e. spot Bitcoin ETFs, could be a vehicle of fraud.

Last Friday, the SEC was seeking public comments on the Grayscale product GBTC for turning it into a spot Bitcoin ETF. Previously, the SEC did the same for the Bitcoin Bitcoin ETF application.

The notice has requested public feedback on whether the proposed ETF will be susceptible to fraud and manipulation. However, it doesn’t give any surety about the SEC approving a Bitcoin ETF anytime soon. Over the last three months, the SEC has turned down major applications of Bitcoin ETFs from SkyBridge, VanEck, and WisdomTree.

Launched in 2013, the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) now manages $27 billion in assets under management. GBTC allowed institutional players to seek exposure to Bitcoin in a regulated environment. Being early in the game, GBTC was already trading at a premium to the Bitcoin price. However, with a bund of ETF products in the market, GBTC is already facing the heat of the competition.

A Bloomberg Intelligence report shows that despite the recent price volatility in the crypto market, demand for spot Bitcoin ETF will be sustained in the short term.

Metaverse ETF Price War Starts

Amid all the craze surrounding the Metaverse, big players are already jumping into the game to attract institutions. A week back, Fidelity Investments made a move by filing for a Metaverse ETF with the U.S. SEC.

Now to take the competition further, Roundhill Ball Metaverse ETF (METV) – which manages $859 million in assets – said that it has reduced its management fee to 0.59% from the earlier 0.75%. This is the lowest fee among its two other competitors in the market – the Subversive Metaverse ETF (PUNK) and the Fount Metaverse ETF (MTVR).

The METV is probably the oldest and biggest Metaverse ETF. However, the competition is growing pretty fast. Speaking of this development, Athanasios Psarofagis, ETF analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence said:

“That was a pretty big jump. You’ve got PUNK now and Global X and Fidelity just filed too. So, it’s going to get competitive.”

METV comprises some big companies operating in the Metaverse space including Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Nvidia Corp.