Spot Ethereum ETFs could launch in late June or around Independence Day: analyst

KEY POINTS

• Bloomberg’s Balchunas said approval in late June was a ‘legitimate possibility’
• However, he believes approval around Independence Day is more likely.
• The SEC must approve issuers’ S-1 filings before funds begin trading.

Following the approval of 19b-4 filings from exchanges seeking to trade and sell exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to spot Ether (ETH), there is a lot of talk about when the products will launch, and one industry expert has dropped his own prediction: late June or around U.S. Independence Day, July 4.

The recent approval of spot ETH ETFs was for trading only. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has yet to approve S-1 filings from applicant issuers, including BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager.

Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas said Wednesday that a “late June” launch of the fund was “a legitimate possibility,” but he believes a July 4 launch is more likely.

He made this projection after Phoenix News reported that BlackRock had updated its Spot Ether ETF S-1 filing. For Balchunas, the update is a “good sign” and he expects other candidates to also file changes to their records soon. He also expects “another round of pointed comments” from SEC staff before the funds finally get the green light to trade.

Responding to a commenter saying a June 10 launch might be possible, Balchunas said BlackRock’s amended filing was not yet the final version. He also pointed out that some data was missing from the filing and no fees were indicated, which could reinforce the idea that another review will come before launch.

Balchunas’ prediction comes just days after Ethereum ETF 19b-4 Approvals. At the time, some crypto enthusiasts said the move was a major milestone not only for the Ethereum blockchain, but also for the digital assets industry as a whole, and could lead to wider adoption of the cryptography.

For Will Cai, head of indices at Kaiko Data, the approval means that “the SEC implicitly declares that ETH (without staking) is a a commodity rather than a title“The issue has been controversial in nature for years, as the SEC, chaired by Gary Gensler, has not shared its views on the world’s second largest digital asset.

Additionally, the path to approval of spot Ether ETFs has been more difficult than that of spot Bitcoin ETFs. Balchunas and other experts have repeatedly pointed out that the regulatory agency has remained largely silent regarding the funds, contrary to the positive meetings it has held with Bitcoin issuers. The regulator made a last-minute decision that ultimately shocked industry experts.

Meanwhile, other analysts have been less direct in their forecasts. James Seyffart, another Bloomberg analyst, said he expects Ether ETFs to start trading in “a few weeks, but it might take longer“, given that the process historically takes months.

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