The Securities and Exchange Commission is weighing several bitcoin exchange-traded fund proposals and is now soliciting comments on applications from Fidelity Investments and hedge fund SkyBridge Capital.
In a filing Tuesday, the SEC said it was reviewing a proposal from FD Funds Management, a subsidiary of Fidelity, to launch the Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust. Fidelity, which intends to list shares of the ETF on Cboe's BZX Exchange, filed the proposal in March.
Cboe, which made the filing published Tuesday by the SEC in support of Fidelity's proposal, said the "significant increase in investor participation in and institutional adoption of bitcoin have facilitated the maturation of the bitcoin trading ecosystem." Approving Fidelity's proposal — and similar ones filed by other firms — would allow U.S. investors "to access bitcoin in a regulated and transparent exchange-traded vehicle" that would act to moderate risk, including by reducing premium and discount volatility and lowering management fees through meaningful competition, Cboe said.
Also, the SEC is examining a bitcoin ETF proposal from SkyBridge, which was founded by Anthony Scaramucci, and investment firm First Trust Advisors, according to a May 21 filing. Paperwork for the proposed First Trust SkyBridge Bitcoin ETF Trust was filed with the SEC in March. If approved, it would list shares on the New York Stock Exchange Arca.
To date, the SEC has not approved a bitcoin ETF, but a decision on at least one proposal could come in mid-June.
The SEC said in an April filing that it will announce a decision by June 17 on a proposal from VanEck Associates Corp. to create a bitcoin ETF. If approved, the VanEck Bitcoin Trust would list shares on Cboe's BZX Exchange.
Canadian regulators earlier this year approved the first bitcoin ETF in North America, the Purpose Bitcoin ETF, which has C$891 million ($737 million) AUM.
