WisdomTree, an asset manager, is making another attempt to submit a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) filing, despite previous rejections. The company has filed an amendment with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as reported by Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart.
The revised filing, known as S-1, comes at a time when there is growing interest in cryptocurrency ETFs. NYDIG, a US crypto firm, estimates that the demand for a spot Bitcoin ETF is approximately $30 billion.
Seyffart mentioned that the filing does not contain anything critical and emphasized that it is a standard step in the process. He added, “Just a step in the process. Nothing critical.”
Major mainstream investment firms such as BlackRock and Fidelity, as well as crypto-focused companies like Grayscale, have all submitted filings for a spot Bitcoin ETF with the SEC. However, the SEC has yet to approve any spot Bitcoin ETF applications. Experts and crypto market speculators predict that the first approval may come in early 2024.
The Potential Impact on ETF Investors
Bryan Armour, the director of passive strategies research for North America at Morningstar, believes that the approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF would be highly beneficial for ETF investors. He states that it would be the “best product on the market.”
WisdomTree has previously faced rejections from the SEC for its Bitcoin ETF filings. In 2021 and 2022, the SEC rejected WisdomTree’s applications, stating that they lacked sufficient investor protections. However, Jeremy Schwartz, a representative from WisdomTree, is optimistic that the changes made in the recent filings will satisfy the regulators.
Schwartz also highlighted the company’s success in launching products in Europe, where regulators have been more accommodating. He stated, “The European regulators have been more friendly, and they’ve been able to get comfortable with the mechanisms, the custodians, [and] how the markets work.”
