The journey to a potential Bitcoin ETF has so far been long and arduous. But some key decisions in the race are likely coming this week as crypto faithful await to see how things play out this time, Bloomberg News reported. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is expected to respond to filings from Bitwise, BlackRock, VanEck, WisdomTree and Invesco right before the Labor-Day weekend, according to Bloomberg Intelligence. Regulators can reject, approve or delay. Bitwise’s application is set for consideration by Friday, with the others due the following day, making it likely the SEC will weigh in before the weekend. Analysts and industry observers anticipate the SEC to once again punt on making a decision. The regulator had already in early August dealt a delay to 21Shares for its spot-Bitcoin application with ARK Investment Management, and has prior to that denied numerous applications over the past decade. “We can expect to see more delays from the SEC especially after they already delayed their decision earlier this month on ARK’s spot-Bitcoin ETF filing,” said Roxanna Islam, associate director of research and head of sector and industry research at VettaFi. “We need to see a decision from the SEC on Grayscale’s lawsuit first — otherwise, we might see them approve Ether-futures ETF filings before they approve any spot-Bitcoin ETF filings.” The SEC last year rejected Grayscale Investments’ plan to convert its Bitcoin trust to an ETF, saying crypto markets are too ripe for fraud and manipulation. Grayscale sued, asking the DC Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn a decision the company called arbitrary and discriminatory because the SEC had already approved ETFs that track Bitcoin futures.
