SEC Delays Decision On NYDIG Bitcoin ETF Again

The SEC delays decision on NYDIG Bitcoin ETF once again and we will have to wait for a decision until March 16 as we can see more today in our latest BTC news.

The SEC delayed the decision on NYDIG bitcoin ETF but if approved it will be the first spot-based Bitcoin ETF in the country. The SEC delayed giving a “yes” or a “no” to what could be the first spot market BTC ETF in the US. NYDIG as a subsidiary of asset manager Stone Ridge Holdings Group applied in 2021 for a Bitcoin ETF that will allow investors to buy and sell shares that track the price of the biggest cryptocurrency. The SEC was going to approve or reject it on January 15^th this year but today it said it will extend the deadline for another 60 days and will give an answer on March 16.

An ETF is an investment product that will allow investors to buy shares that represent an asset without having to deal with it themselves be it gold, BTC, or foreign currencies. Market analysts believed for years that the SEC will approve a Bitcoin ETF and it will open the floodgates to the institutional investors to boost bitcoin’s price. A Bitcoin ETF doesn’t exist yet in the US because the SEC rejected applications for the product multiple times citing concerns over price manipulation on the crypto market. Bitcoin futures ETFs do exist in the US and they are extremely popular. ProShares’ Bitcoin Strategy ETF traded about $1 billion in shares on its debut when it started trading on the New York Stock Exchange in October.

A futures ETF is different as its shares represent a contract that bets on the future price of Bitcoin but not the asset itself. The trading of the products is regulated by the CFTC and there is hunger, analysts say for a spot-based product that is tracking Bitcoin itself and not just futures contracts but the SEC is slowly dragging its heels. SEC Chair Gary Gensler showed little enthusiasm for these products despite allowing BTC futures ETFs to move ahead.

As recently reported, Corey Frayer joined the SEC’s executive staff as a senior advisor on the agency’s oversight of crypto. The US SEC chair Gary Gensler picked Corey Frayer as his senior advisor to facilitate the policymaking that is related to the regulator’s oversight of crypto assets.