Just In: US SEC Delays Decision on Fidelity’s Ethereum ETF Options Proposal

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has delayed its decision to either approve or deny the request from Fidelity Investments to list Options on its spot Ethereum ETF product. According to the filing from the markets regulator, despite following the schedule designated to review the proposal, it still requires additional time to decide the next move.

Spot Ethereum ETF and Options Push

As the market regulator noted in its filing, it will now look to May 2, 2025 as the tentative timeline to release its decision for the Options listing on spot Ethereum ETF. Already, it has asked the public for comments on the proposed filing and received the feedback as of January 21, 2025.

Fidelity’s push for an Options on its spot Ethereum ETF product through CBOE Exchange dates as far back as August 2024. It specifically requests to list options on the Fidelity Ethereum Fund (FETH). Initially, the SEC sought more time to decide on October 19, 2024. 

As reported, CBOE Exchange filed the proposed rule change to further diversify the firm’s interest in the ETF market.

US SEC To Rule on BlackRock Options Proposal In April

There is growing interest in options on ETH ETF products in general. Earlier in February, the CBOE BZX Exchange filed a proposed rule change to list and trade options on Bitwise Ethereum Fund. 

BlacRock is also moving to list options tied to its iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) but none of these proposals has gained a greenlight from the markets regulator.

Unfortunately, the asset manager received a similar response through Nasdaq, as Fidelity. The SEC has asked that it publish its decision on listing options for ETHA by April. Getting the Commission’s approval to list this offering might go a long way in facilitating widespread adoption for the underlying cryptocurrency as market experts noted.

ETH ETF and Staking Push

It is worth noting that FETH is among the top popular Ethereum ETFs. According to VettaFi data, it holds as much as $1.3 billion in net assets. Other leading Ethereum ETFs are BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust which holds as much as $3.7 billion in net assets. 

Meanwhile, it is likely that the SEC will allow staking for Ethereum ETFs in the near future. A few days ago, the agency acknowledged the 19b-4 filing by the Cboe exchange that is seeking the approval of staking features in the 21Shares Core Ethereum ETF (CETH).

With regulations getting improvement with the US SEC, chances this products will gain approval are considered very high.