By
Godfrey Benjamin
July 1st, 2024
As the regulatory process continues, market participants eagerly await the potential launch of Ethereum-linked financial products.
The Securities and Exchange Commission-registered financial securities clearing company Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation’s (DTCC) has recently added Fidelity Investments’ US spot Ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF) to its list of ETFs. The fund, named Fidelity Ethereum FD Beneficial INT, appears under the ticker FETH.
According to the list, DTCC has designated the ETF as a domestic fund. However, it is currently marked as “N” in the create/redeem column, indicating that it is not yet active. The company stated:
“This file includes both active ETFs that may be processed at DTCC and ETFs that are not yet active (‘pre launch’) and, therefore, are not able to be processed at DTCC, unless and until such securities have received all necessary regulatory and other approvals.”
Alongside Fidelity, proposed spot Ether ETFs from VanEck, Franklin Templeton, and BlackRock have also been included on this list. However, DTCC has clarified that such additions are “standard practice” and do not necessarily indicate impending regulatory approval.
Players Make Moves
Last week, the SEC gave a green light to eight 19b-4 forms for spot Ether ETFs from major financial players, including BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, Bitwise, VanEck, Ark Invest, Invesco Galaxy, and Franklin Templeton. Despite this preliminary approval, these firms are still required to obtain approval for their S-1 registration statements from the agency before their funds can start trading.
It is important to note that Fidelity filed its updated S-1 form last week, signaling its readiness to move forward pending final regulatory clearance. Similarly, BlackRock submitted its amended registration statement on Wednesday.
In contrast, investment manager Hashdex has opted to withdraw its application for a spot Ether ETF as it “no longer intends to move forward with a single asset Ether ETF”.
According to documents filed with the SEC, the application was withdrawn on May 24, just a day after the SEC approved eight similar financial products. The reasons behind Hashdex’s withdrawal remain unclear, and it is unknown if the firm plans to resubmit its proposal in the future.
Launch Date Predictions
As the regulatory process continues, market participants eagerly await the potential launch of Ethereum-linked financial products. These spot Ether ETFs could potentially launch as early as mid-June provided the SEC follows a similar timeline to its spot Bitcoin ETF process. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas recently commented on the S-1 registrations, expecting additional filings to follow soon. He noted that there will likely be another round of detailed comments from the regulatory agency.
The analyst believes that a launch by the end of June is a realistic possibility but maintains his estimated launch date around July 4.
Meanwhile, Ether is trading at around $3,750, reflecting a 3% decline from the previous day. The trading volume stands at $16.8 billion, marking a 10% decrease in the last 24 hours.