ETFs
Cathie Wood, CEO of ARK Invest, said at Consensus 2024 that Ether ETF filings were approved because crypto is an election issue.
AUSTIN, TX — ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood says crypto is now a U.S. election issue, which is why key documents for proposed ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have been approved. suddenly and unexpectedly.
“It was understood that this was not going to be approved. This was absolutely not going to be approved,” Wood said on stage at Consensus 2024 in an interview with Peter McCormack, host of the What Bitcoin Did podcast. “If this had been approved in the usual way, we would have received questions from the SEC. No one had received questions from the SEC before.”
“The other thing that happened was that former President Trump had become much more comfortable with bitcoin and crypto in general. That week he said he would accept crypto campaign donations,” which caught the administration’s attention, Wood said.
Wood also said that while a Solana ETF could be approved, coin-focused funds are unlikely because wire companies – large brokerage firms and investment advisory firms – would only accept no more than “the majors”.
Wood also stated that ARK’s position is that Bitcoin (BTC) is a public good, and the Ark 21Shares Bitcoin ETF that was approved in January with a 0.21% fee would not make money.
“We should do [the ETF] as accessible as possible to as many people as possible, so keep costs very low. »
She also announced that ARK would allocate a percentage of revenue from its private funds to support Bitcoin developers, ensuring that they receive consistent support regardless of the ETF’s profitability.
Bitcoin vs. Ethereum
Although the ether (ETH) While she’s having her own moment in the sun thanks to progress in approving ether ETFs, Wood didn’t hold back on her bitcoin stance when asked if she’d rather hold bitcoin or ether .
“Bitcoin, hands down. There’s no doubt about it. It’s a global monetary system. It’s a technology and it’s a new asset class. It’s three big ideas in one, and nothing else in the world of cryptography does not compete with it.