SEC Ethereum ETF Discussions Underway, S-1 Approval Expected Within Hours

Authored by Josh O’Sullivan via CoinTelegraph.com,

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) began discussions with potential issuers of Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on May 22, leading some to anticipate an imminent approval.

Journalist Eleanor Terrett noted that discussions between SEC staff and Ether ETF issuers about the S-1 forms concluded with the understanding that there was still “work to do.”

Source: Eleanor Terrett

S-1 forms are registration statements that companies have to file with the SEC, including detailed information about the company and the securities they intend to offer/issue.

Whereas 19b-4 forms are regulatory filings issued to the SEC for approval, used by self-regulatory organizations (SROs) like stock exchanges or trading platforms to propose new rules or change existing ones.

In a subsequent post, Terrett deferred to “the ETF experts” in a separate post.

Assuming that the SEC approves the 19b-4 forms on May 23, Terrett speculated that the SEC might work with Ether ETF issuers “on S-1’s over the next few weeks/months.” 

Eric Balchunas, a Senior ETF Analyst at Bloomberg, expects the SEC to issue an announcement on May 23, around the same time they did for the spot Bitcoin ETF.

“My best guess is we hear from the SEC around 4pm tomorrow. For spot btc they dropped it at 3:45pm, some others in past were slightly after 4pm. Anything poss tho.”

This development follows the approval of the FIT21 crypto bill in the U.S. House of Representatives, which passed on May 22 with 208 Republicans and 71 Democrats in favor to 136 against.

Consensys CEO Joseph Lubin recently weighed in on the discussion in anticipation of the potential looming Ether ETF approvals.

Speaking exclusively to Cointelegraph at DappCon in Berlin, Lubin stated that Ether ETFs in the U.S. were “as good as done.”

According to Lubin, the 19b-4 applications filed by high-profile firms like BlackRock would be approved, but the process behind the S-1s “could drag on for a while.”

The Ethereum co-founder explained that pressure toward adopting a neutral stance is being applied to the SEC as we approach the upcoming U.S. presidential elections.

Hey @GaryGensler what time are you getting hacked today?

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) May 21, 2024

Considering where Ether price action might head in the event of an approval, trading firm QCP Capital put the upside potential at 60%.

“We think an approval is now highly likely with trading expected as early as next week,” it wrote in part of its latest update to Telegram channel subscribers.

The target of 60% higher than current spot price — approximately $6,000 — was based on Bitcoin’s performance in the months after its own U.S. spot ETF go-ahead in January.

Popular trader Jelle, meanwhile, was one of many assuming that the stars would align for Ether bulls on the day.

“ETF decision this afternoon, but the chart looks like it knows the outcome. Higher,” he wrote in part of an X post on the topic.