Bitcoin ETFs Still A Distant Dream, SEC Official’s Comments Suggest

By Prashant Jha

We all know that there is no love lost between the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the crypto world, and an SEC commissioner made no bones about it at a recent event. Speaking at the Digital Asset Investment Forum in Washington DC on 5th December, the SEC commissioner Hester Peirce said that we cannot expect a Bitcoin ETF to be approved anytime soon.

It is no secret in the crypto world that the tussle between Bitcoin ETFs and the SEC has been going on for a while now, with the regulatory body repeatedly rebuffing requests for Bitcoin ETF approvals. ETFs are exchange traded funds and a Bitcoin ETF would allow a user to track diverse investments through the ETF without actually having invested in the diverse kinds of funds. The SEC is worried that that might pose security and privacy problems and put investors in a risky situation. Such has been the stalemate, with repeated postponements and rejections that even the godfather of ETFs has given up hope to see the green light coming soon.

As Hester Peirce has been the only SEC official that had been in favour of green-lighting the Bitcoin ETF proposals, her statement comes as a major bummer to crypto enthusiasts. She is often touted as the “Crypto Mom” for her support towards crypto projects and she has said that she’ll continue her attempts to lobby and get a Bitcoin ETF approved soon, although she said it could take days or even years. Having said that, her statement also brings a glimmer of hope as she still maintains that an approval is “definitely possible”. An excerpt from her statement says:

“Don’t hold your breath. I do caution people to not live or die on when a crypto or bitcoin ETF gets approved. You all know that I am working on trying to convince my colleagues to have a bit more of an open mind when it comes to [crypto]. I am not as charming as some other people.”

The Bitcoin ETF proposal from the Gemini Exchange’s Winklevoss brothers has been one of the centrepieces of the struggle for regulatory approval and several other proposals have remained stuck in the loop for a while now and as it appears now, it could stay there for a long long time.

Prashant Jha

As a content writer Prashant believes in presenting complex topics in simple laymen terms. He is a tech enthusiast and an avid reader.

Related Posts