BTC in Limbo as SEC Drags Out Spot BTC ETF Reviews

BTC Remains at the Mercy of the SEC and US Lawmakers

It was a quiet Saturday session, with no external market forces to influence after the US inflation numbers on Friday. The crypto news wires were also silent on ETFs and US lawmaker legislation to roll out a US crypto regulatory framework.

For investors awaiting the SEC decisions on the spot BTC ETF applications, the SEC v Ripple Court ruling could have a bearing on the outcome. This week, SEC Chair Gary Gensler reminded the markets of his view on the digital asset space, suggesting a longer wait for spot BTC ETFs.

The Day Ahead

There are no US economic indicators to influence, leaving SEC v Ripple chatter, ETF updates, and Binance and Coinbase (COIN)-related news to draw interest.

However, investors should also continue to monitor the crypto news wires for SEC activity and US lawmaker chatter. Progress toward delivering a regulatory framework for the US digital asset space should provide price support.

While the SEC does classify see BTC a security, the SEC continues to influence BTC. On Thursday, Grayscale sent a letter discussing the matter of the spot BTC ETF applications. Grayscale highlighted the approval of the Bitcoin Futures ETFs, saying,

“Having determined the CME bitcoin futures market meets the Commission’s stated criteria for a market of significant size in the context of bitcoin futures ETPs, the commission is logically bound to reach the same conclusion in the context of the Trust and other spot bitcoin ETPs.”

The letter went on to say,

“This is because, as the Commission noted in April 2022 when approving a Rule 19b-4 filing relating to a bitcoin futures ETP, CME’s surveillance can reasonably be relied upon to capture the effects on the CME bitcoin futures market caused by a person attempting to manipulate.”

The SEC disapproved a Grayscale spot BTC ETF application in June 2022, stating that the application did not address questions on preventing market manipulation, among others.

However, investors should continue to monitor the crypto news wires for SEC and US lawmaker chatter. Progress toward delivering a regulatory framework for the US digital asset space should provide price support.