- The U.S. SEC has reportedly indicated an inclination to consider Ethereum Futures ETFs.
- The change in the regulator’s stance comes after multiple applications over the past week.
- TradFi and crypto giants, including Grayscale and VanEck, have filed applications for Ether Futures ETFs.
- The securities regulator previously directed multiple funds to withdraw their ETH Futures ETF applications.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) seems to have softened its stance on exchange-traded funds focusing on Ethereum futures contracts. The securities regulator is reportedly inclined to consider the Ether Futures ETFs following several applications by TradFi and crypto players over the past week.
Consideration of Ethereum Futures ETF Won’t Guarantee Approval
When Grayscale Investments filed an application with the SEC to offer the Grayscale Ethereum Futures ETF back in May, fellow funds including Bitwise, Roundhill Investments, and Valkyrie followed suit with their own ETH futures-based ETFs. However, the SEC reportedly asked the funds to stop pursuing ETH futures ETFs and withdraw their applications.
On July 28, Volatility Shares submitted an application for its Ether Strategy ETF. The application was followed by similar filings from VanEck, ProShares, Grayscale, Bitwise, and Roundhill. The funds submitted applications to offer their own versions of Ethereum Futures ETFs.
Citing two sources familiar with the latest ether futures ETF filings, Blockworks reported that the SEC had “indicated its readiness to publicly consider such a product.” The source added that the securities regulator’s consideration of the ETH futures ETFs did not guarantee their approval.
From a product perspective, all the ETF issuers are probably thinking it’s worth the cost of filing rather than risk falling behind in case ETH [ETFs] take off, even in futures form,”
Henry Jim, Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence
If the SEC takes a favorable stance on the latest applications for Ethereum futures-based ETFs, they would go live in 75 days from the date of filing. This would mean that Volatility Shares’ Ether Strategy ETF could launch on October 12, followed by the debut of Grayscale, Bitwise, Roundhill, and ProShares ETFs on October 16.