SEC once again postpones bitcoin-ETF decision

SEC once again postponed its decision on bitcoin-ETF and named new dates

Earlier, members of the U.S. Congress openly urged agency head Gary Gensler to "immediately" approve a spot bitcoin-ETF

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has once again delayed its decision to approve the first U.S. spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) investing directly in bitcoin.

According to documents published on the Commission's website, the regulator has postponed its review of applications from 21Shares and Katie Wood's ARK Investment Management. This is the third time the SEC has delayed a decision on the two companies' applications to launch an ETF. The SEC now has until Jan. 10 to make a final decision.

The regulator's postponement came earlier than industry analysts expected. Technically, they had until November 11 to say whether they would approve the decision, reject it, or postpone it. Other participants, including large companies such as BlackRock and Fidelity Investments, are also awaiting a response.

On Aug. 31, the SEC delayed until October a decision on all spot bitcoin-ETF applications, specifically from BlackRock, WisdomTree, Invesco Galaxy, Wise Origin, VanEck, Bitwise, and Valkyrie Digital. The new deadline for the regulator to review applications for Wise Origin, Galaxy, and WisdomTree is October 17, and for Valkyrie, it is two days later.

Shortly before the SEC's decision was postponed again, a group of four members of the U.S. Congress called on the agency's chairman, Gary Gensler, to "immediately" approve the spot bitcoin ETF.

The officials believe that the regulator "discriminates against crypto products," referring to the situation with Grayscale, whose application to launch an ETF the regulator will have to reconsider after several rejections.

According to the letter's authors, regulated spot bitcoin ETFs "would provide adequate protection for investors by giving them safer and more transparent access to investment vehicles"

On Sept. 27, Gensler will appear before the House Financial Services Committee. According to his published testimony, he intends to take a tough stance on cryptocurrency products.