BlackRock, the largest asset manager in the world, is reportedly anticipating that regulators approve its application for a spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) this week.
Fox Business reports that BlackRock is expecting the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to green light its BTC ETF application this Wednesday, January 10th.
If approved, the ETF will be the first time that the public stock market will feature a crypto investment product that directly tracks the spot market price of Bitcoin.
BlackRock recently tapped JPMorgan, the biggest bank in the US, and trading firm Jane Street to be authorized participants (APs) for the ETF. An AP is an organization, typically a large bank, that has the power to create and redeem shares of a particular ETF.
Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas says that the naming of APs isn’t required on S-1 filings, so BlackRock adding them may have been a power play.
“Just to be clear: the AP names weren’t due in S-1s, so BlackRock adding them in there is a bit of a flex in that regard. So if we see other S-1s not naming AP doesn’t mean they don’t have one lined up. But this does make BlackRock the first horse officially ready in my opinion.”
Other than BlackRock, asset managers including ARK Invest, Valkyrie and Wisdom Tree are also hoping for approvals on their ETF applications.
Don't Miss a Beat – Subscribe to get email alerts delivered directly to your inboxGenerated Image: DreamStudio