admin 
As reported by Reuters on December 22, officials of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have met with representatives of at least seven companies, in the hopes of launching exchange-traded funds (ETFs) based on Bitcoin in early 2024. It was stated in the meeting that at least two of them should submit their final changes by the end of 2024. This information is based on public notes and two sources familiar with the discussions to be held next week.
Among the representatives of the companies attending the meeting were BlackRock (BLK.N), Grayscale Investments, ARK Investments, and 21 Shares, as well as those who had discussions with the SEC.
The SEC is expected to decide whether to approve the joint offer of ARK and 21 Shares by January 10. Most issuers believe that the SEC could approve multiple applications simultaneously by this date.
Two executives from the attending firms spoke in the background due to the confidentiality of the talks and stated that the SEC had set a date for the final updates on their files on December 29. Both executives emphasized that an issuer missing this deadline will not be part of the potential first wave of spot Bitcoin ETF approvals.
You might like: Latest Status on Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies! 23 December
It is known that the SEC has rejected applications to launch spot Bitcoin ETFs on the grounds that the cryptocurrency market is vulnerable to manipulation. However, in recent months, there have been signs that regulators are eager to approve some spot Bitcoin ETFs. This was notably observed with increased discussions about a federal appeals court decision after the SEC’s rejection in August of Grayscale’s proposal to convert its trust into an ETF.
According to sources who attended meetings with SEC officials, it is suggested that the agency could give approval in the first few business days of 2024. It is said that regulators will inform when ETFs will become active while giving this approval.
Latest Updates
In recent days, it is reported that some issuers have made technical changes in their ETF offers. For example, it is noted that both BlackRock and ARK have updated their applications by implementing a change demanded by the SEC.
These updates include details such as fees and the seed capital of new ETFs. ARK and 21 Shares stand out as the only companies that have announced the fee they plan to take from their joint ETFs as 0.80%.
Updates also include information about the amounts issuers will use to launch new ETFs. These amounts are said to be small initially but will increase after the ETFs start trading. These amounts are offered as seed capital to market makers in order to provide a liquid market for new ETFs.