BlackRock Bitcoin Spot ETF not far away from approval?
Traditional financial giant BlackRock submitted the application documents for a Bitcoin spot ETF on December 4th. Due to increasing anticipation of its approval, new institutions are joining the fray. Pando Asset, a Swiss asset management company, has officially submitted its application to the SEC, becoming the 13th challenger seeking approval for a Bitcoin spot ETF.
BlackRock adds audit statement endorsement
In the prospectus submitted by BlackRock, it has strengthened monitoring measures for abnormal price movements in the Bitcoin spot ETF and enhanced anti-money laundering compliance. Additionally, it has included an endorsement from the auditing firm EY, highlighting the issuer’s and SEC’s emphasis on financial transparency and compliance.
BlackRock secures $100,000 in seed funding
Furthermore, the documents also indicate that on October 27th, BlackRock had already raised a ‘seed funding’ of $100,000 for its proposed Bitcoin spot ETF. On the other hand, VanEck, on October 30th, also filed an amended document, planning to create a seed fund of 50,000 shares of the ETF. Unlike BlackRock, VanEck’s unique approach involves using Bitcoin rather than cash as the seed fund.
Bloomberg analysts point to two redemption mechanisms
Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas pointed out that there are rumors in the market suggesting that the SEC might initially approve only a cash redemption mechanism. However, most issuers are actually prepared to address both possibilities. If BlackRock secures SEC support, many issuers will opt for trading in physical form; otherwise, they will resort to a cash mechanism.
There is a chance to see the birth of BTC spot ETF in January 2024
Additionally, according to Bloomberg analyst James Seyffart’s compilation, we can see that by mid-January next year, the SEC will need to submit review comments again. If all goes well, we might witness the birth of the first BTC spot ETF officially about a month or so after that.
