SEC delays Ether ETF decision

And the delay of the Ether ETF greets us daily. Now the SEC is also delaying its decision on the Invesco Ethereum ETF. What does this mean?

The American Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) states a decision on the proposed Invesco Galaxy Ethereum Spot ETF further out. In a filing yesterday (Monday) it gave itself another 60 days, meaning the new deadline is now July 5.

"The Commission believes that it is appropriate to set a longer deadline for approval or disapproval of the proposed rule change to give it sufficient time to consider the proposed rule change and the issues it raises," wrote the SEC.

In recent months, the SEC had deferred decisions on the applications of all eight potential Ether ETF issuers. These include BlackRock, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton, Hashdex and Ark 21Shares.

Gary Gensler's office had previously delayed a decision on the Invesco Galaxy Ethereum ETF. In February, the SEC requested public comment on the planned index fund.

Hopes for Ethereum ETF approval have waned significantly recently. Bloomberg ETF expert Eric Balchunas reduced its assumed likelihood of approval by the SEC at the end of May from about 70 percent to just 25 percent.

His colleague James Seyffart noted that May 23 is the last deadline for VanEck's Ether ETF application and therefore the "only deadline that matters".

Seyffart added that he has changed his "cautiously optimistic" stance on Ether ETF applications. Since March 20, he expects all Ether ETF applications to be "ultimately rejected" by the SEC on May 23.