U.S. SEC Punts on Bitcoin (BTC) Spot Exchange-Traded Fund Approvals, Delays Decisions Until October

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is delaying its decision on the approval of spot-based Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) until October.

In new filings, the regulatory agency announces that it will be pushing back its decision to approve or deny numerous bids to create BTC ETFs, including those of financial firms Invesco, WisdomTree and Valkyrie, from August to October.

A Bitcoin ETF would give investors exposure to the crypto asset through brokerages, much like precious metals such as gold and silver.

The move comes as no surprise to Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart, who says it would have been shocking if the SEC had actually made its decision this week.

“Middle of October are the next major days to watch. Namely October 16th. Also, a reminder that we fully expected delays on this round of spot [market] Bitcoin ETF filings. Would have been a shock if they were approved this week.”

Earlier this week, Seyffart and another Bloomberg ETF analyst, Eric Balchunas, said that there’s a 75% chance that a spot market BTC ETF would be approved by the end of 2023 and a 95% chance that it would be approved by the end of 2024.

Though the decision has been delayed, former SEC Chairman Jay Clayton recently said that the approval of BTC ETFs is “inevitable” as it’s obvious that Bitcoin doesn’t qualify as a security and the SEC’s concerns about investor safety have been addressed by financial institutions.

Bitcoin is trading for $25,627 at time of writing, a 2.54% decrease during the last 24 hours.

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