ETH ETF Soon? Asset Managers Amend Spot Ethereum ETF Filings, Removing Staking Provisions

In a significant development for the cryptocurrency market, asset management firms BlackRock, Bitwise, and Grayscale have submitted amended 19b-4 filings to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for their spot Ethereum (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications.

The revised filings, submitted on May 22, remove provisions for staking, a move that aligns with similar amendments made by fellow issuers Fidelity, VanEck, Franklin Templeton, Invesco Galaxy, and ARK 21Shares on May 21.

TLDR

• BlackRock, Bitwise, and Grayscale submitted amended 19b-4 filings to the SEC for their spot Ethereum ETF applications, removing provisions for staking.
• Fidelity, VanEck, Franklin Templeton, Invesco Galaxy, and ARK 21Shares also amended their applications to remove staking provisions.
• The SEC is expected to decide whether to approve or deny listing and trading of spot Ethereum ETFs by May 23, when the regulator reaches its final deadline for VanEck’s application.
• The SEC has begun conversations with issuers on their S-1 filings, suggesting that there may be a delay of days to weeks before approval.
• The SEC has published a filing requesting public feedback on several potential spot Ethereum ETF applications, citing investor protection issues as a key concern.

The amended filings come as the SEC’s deadline to decide on VanEck’s spot Ethereum ETF application looms less than 24 hours away.

he regulator is expected to approve or deny listing and trading of spot Ethereum ETFs by May 23. The 19b-4 filings are crucial, as they are submitted by national exchanges like the NASDAQ or the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) to the SEC to seek approval for listing new products on their trading platforms.

BlackRock’s amended filing, submitted to the Nasdaq Stock Market, states that

“Neither the Trust, nor the Sponsor, nor the Ether Custodian […] nor any other person associated with the Trust will, directly or indirectly, engage in action where any portion of the Trust’s ETH becomes subject to the Ethereum proof-of-stake validation or is used to earn additional ETH or generate income or other earnings.”

This change in stance on staking provisions is mirrored in the amendments made by Grayscale and Bitwise to the NYSE Arca.

While the focus has been on the 19b-4 filings, the SEC has also begun conversations with issuers on their S-1 filings, which detail how a fund would be managed and track the underlying asset’s price.

According to Fox Business’ Eleanor Terret, SEC staff have concluded that there is work to be done on the S-1 filings. Bloomberg analyst James Seyffart suggests that while S-1 approval is a matter of “when” and not “if,” it may take days to weeks before the SEC approves them.

The crypto community is eagerly awaiting the SEC’s decision, with many speculating that the agency’s recent change of mind may have been influenced by political factors, possibly from the highest levels of the US government.

The approval of spot Ethereum ETFs would mark a significant regulatory shift and could prove that the crypto crowd is a legitimate voting block.

As the deadline approaches, Ethereum bulls appear to be conserving strength for a potential SEC approval.

The $3,618 level serves as a support in case of a short-term downward move, and ETH liquidation data confirms that bulls may be slowing down.

If the SEC approves the spot Ethereum ETFs, analysts predict that Ethereum could skyrocket over 30% to set a new all-time high above $4,878, with some even suggesting a 75% surge to $6,600, similar to Bitcoin’s 75% surge after its ETF approval.

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