Chair Gary Gensler recently indicated that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) might approve the listing and trading of spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by mid-2024.
While the SEC approved 19b-4 filings from eight firms on May 23, the launch of these ETFs on US exchanges still hinges on the S-1 registration statements approvals.
During a Senate Banking Committee hearing on June 13, which focused on US President Joe Biden's 2025 budget requests for the SEC, Gensler mentioned that the commission expects to approve these statements for asset managers within the summer.
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Senator Bill Hagerty questioned why the SEC had not fully approved Ether ETFs, criticizing Gensler for allegedly neglecting to establish clear regulatory guidelines for crypto. Gensler redirected the conversation to the progress on Ether ETFs, explaining:
Individual issuers still are working through the registration process that's working smoothly, and I would envision sometime over the course of this summer.
The SEC chair had previously mentioned that the final approvals for spot Ether ETFs would take time. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas speculated that the Ether ETFs might debut on US exchanges by late June but expects the final approvals around July 4, while ETF analyst James Seyffart anticipated a summer launch.
The SEC's approach to spot Ether ETFs follows its handling of spot Bitcoin ETFs earlier this year. On January 10, the commission approved 19b-4 filings for Bitcoin ETFs, which began trading the next day.
Therefore, while the SEC's final approval for spot Ether ETFs remains pending, there is optimism that these investment products will be available soon.
