The SEC should fully approve Spot Ether ETFs by September, according to the regulator’s chairman Gary Gensler. The chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission told senators in a budget hearing that the applications to run ether spot ETFs should be finished by the end of the summer.
The first round of Spot Ethereum ETF approvals came at the end of May 2024. The ETH ETF approvals were a surprise to the digital asset market as a whole. The SEC had long resisted the approval of the crypto-based exchange-trade product, despite the success of a Spot Bitcoin ETF following its January approval. Conversely, Gensler discussed the need for patience as the process is still ongoing. However, a tighter timetable has officially been made.
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What’s Left Before The SEC Approves Ether ETFs?
According to Gensler, all that remains for full Ether ETF approval are the registration details getting hammered out at the SEC staff level. On the flip side, he and the agency still have mixed emotions on the idea of Ethereum ETFs and cryptocurrency as a whole. Gensler repeated his complaints about the noncompliant crypto industry at the hearing, and still refuses to answer whether ETH is a commodity or not. Furthermore, he argues that the CFTC isn’t ready to police crypto markets.
For context, Ethereum-based Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) are a type of investment fund that holds Ethereum like stocks, commodities, or cryptocurrency. The ETFs trade on stock exchanges similar to stocks.
Upon all filings being approved, the first Spot Ethereum ETFs can finally be traded. Upon the first approval news in May, the price of ETH jumped significantly. At press time, Ether is trading at 3,476.72, up nearly 18% in the last 30 days. Once full approval comes, the market expects Ether to surge to further all-time highs like Bitcoin did.
