The logo of the Bitcoin digital currency is seen in a shop in Marseille, France, February 7, 2021. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard/File Photo/File Photo Acquire Licensing Rights
June 27 (Reuters) – Asset manager Fidelity is expected to file with the U.S. securities regulator for a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund, joining other big money managers seeking to launch bitcoin ETFs, the Block reported on Tuesday citing a source familiar with the matter.
In the past two weeks, BlackRock(BLK.N), WisdomTree(WT.N), Invesco(IVZ.N), VanEck, and Bitwise have filed new applications with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for spot bitcoin ETFs, sending the price of bitcoin to a more than one-year high of over $31,000 on June 23.
Fidelity declined to comment.
The Boston-based financial firm is also part of a consortium that includes market makers Citadel Securities and Virtu Financial (VIRT.O), retail broker Charles Schwab (SCHW.N), and venture capital firms Paradigm and Sequoia Capital, which recently launched a crypto exchange called EDX Markets.
"There's a lot of optimism here that you're going to get a bitcoin ETF," said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at Oanda.
"If that does get done, it could open the door for much more institutional money and probably some high-net-worth retail traders to get back into crypto," he said.
Futures-based bitcoin ETFs that track the price of bitcoin futures contracts have been allowed by regulators since October 2021.
But the SEC has in recent years rejected dozens of applications for spot bitcoin ETFs, which are a publicly traded investment vehicles that directly track the price of bitcoin, including one by Fidelity in January 2022, over concerns that the underlying market could be manipulated.
The game changer for many people this time around was BlackRock applying for a spot bitcoin ETF, because it files for ETFs only when it believes it can get them approved, Moya said.
The ETF filing has helped reverse negative sentiment in the bitcoin and broader cryptocurrency markets, after a series of crypto company meltdowns, including the sudden collapse late last year of exchange FTX, which authorities allege was running a multi-billion dollar fraud.
More recently, regulatory scrutiny has weighed on the sector. This month, Binance and Coinbase Global (COIN.O), two of the biggest crypto exchanges, were sued by the SEC for allegedly violating its rules, which the pair deny.
Investors and speculators view the recent spot bitcoin ETF filings as a vote of confidence for the crypto space, said Alex Adelman, chief executive of bitcoin rewards company Lolli, especially "since institutions like BlackRock and Fidelity provide the expertise and custodial services top retailers rely on to serve global consumers."
Separately, the SEC is itself being sued by Grayscale Investment over the regulator's rejection of Grayscale's application to convert its flagship spot Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC.PK) into an ETF.
That case, which could wrap up by the end of summer, hinges on the SEC having previously approved certain surveillance agreements to prevent fraud in bitcoin futures-based ETFs, with Grayscale arguing that the same setup should apply to its spot fund, since both spot and futures funds rely on bitcoin's price.
Reporting by John McCrank in New York and Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; additional reporting by Hannah Lang in Washington; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri, Michelle Price and Lisa Shumaker
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Thomson Reuters
Niket Nishant reports on breaking news and the quarterly earnings of Wall Street's largest banks, card companies, financial technology upstarts and asset managers. He also covers the biggest IPOs on U.S. exchanges, and late-stage venture capital funding alongside news and regulatory developments in the cryptocurrency industry. His writing appears on the finance, business, markets and future of money sections of the website. He did his post-graduation from the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media (IIJNM) in Bengaluru.
European Union lawmaker Brando Benifei, who is leading negotiations on artificial intelligence rules, on Thursday urged EU countries to compromise in key areas in order to reach agreement with the bloc's executive by the end of the year.
Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the world’s largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers.
Build the strongest argument relying on authoritative content, attorney-editor expertise, and industry defining technology.
The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs.
The industry leader for online information for tax, accounting and finance professionals.
Access unmatched financial data, news and content in a highly-customised workflow experience on desktop, web and mobile.
Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts.
Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks.
All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays.
© 2023 Reuters. All rights reserved
Thank you for joining us on this exploration of blockchain news.
Until next time, stay curious and keep exploring.
https://invtron.com
https://invtrondao.com
https://uniquegroup.marketing