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Experts are unsure if ethereum spot ETFs will be approved in May.
Bloomberg ETF expert Eric Balchunas said in x that the probability of ethereum (eth) spot ETF applications being accepted in May is less than 50% due to the absence of telltale signs present before bitcoin (btc) spot ETFs were approved in January. Analysts previously predicted a 60% to 70% chance of approval by May.
Fox's Eleanor Terrett also shared this sentiment, noting that the US SEC has yet to engage issuers as it did with btc ETF spot offerings last year.
Variant Fund Chief Legal Officer Jake Chervinsky shared similar comments in a March 11 thread. According to the crypto lawyer, the securities watchdog could present new grounds for denial that were not previously established during the Grayscale court case.
Chervinsky also opined that the SEC could review its stance on the correlation between spot and futures markets and insist that futures products offer sufficient exposure to crypto assets despite the Grayscale ruling. The legal veteran argued that the August 2023 verdict was not an “absolute sentiment,” leaving room for the SEC to reuse similar tactics with new justifications.
To be clear, I'm not saying there is *no* chance of a spot eth ETF being approved this year. I'm just saying that the general sentiment in this early-to-mid-decade bull market is overestimating the chances of approval given all the political and strategic factors weighing against it.
Jake Chervinsky, Legal Director, Variant Fund
ethereum ETF Spot Issuers Left in Limbo
Gary Gensler's commission previously began ongoing discussions with btc spot ETF applications within 90 days of the approve or disapprove deadline.
However, the 90-day window for spot ethereum ETFs opened around February 23, and the SEC instead delayed decisions on multiple spot eth ETF offerings until May, with no apparent response to the requests. issuers about the details of the presentation.
crypto.news reported possible meetings between the SEC and ethereum spot ETF issuers this month, citing sources first mentioned by Reuters. Coinbase has also urged the securities regulator to approve Grayscale's bid to convert its ethereum Trust into an ETF as a necessary measure.
