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In a dramatic turn of events, Grayscale shocked the cryptocurrency community by retracting its application for an Ethereum futures exchange-traded fund just days before the SEC's looming decision deadline. This cast doubt on the fate of crypto ETFs and left experts scrambling for explanations.
Last-Minute Maneuvering by Grayscale
The withdrawal comes a little over two weeks before the US securities regulator must rule on at least one spot Ether ETF proposal, as per Cointelegraph.
Grayscale has made an unexpected step by withdrawing its 19b-4 application for its Ether (ETH) futures exchange-traded fund just three weeks before the securities regulator is required to rule on it.
On May 7, the cryptocurrency asset management filed a notice of withdrawal from the Grayscale Ethereum Futures Trust with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
The SEC was supposed to issue a final decision on Grayscale's Ether futures ETF on May 30.
Grayscale first filed a 19b-4 application for its Ether futures ETF on September 19, 2023. If granted, the ETF would have been listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
SEC Deadline Approaches Amid Uncertainty
Bloomberg ETF expert James Seyffart first believed Grayscale intended to intentionally exploit its Ether futures ETF as a "trojan horse" to force the SEC to approve its spot Ether ETF.
But he was perplexed as to why Grayscale would withdraw now, given that the SEC will be compelled to decide whether to allow or refuse multiple at least one spot Ether ETF applications on May 23, just over two weeks away.
For several months, Seyffart and fellow Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas have given the spot Ether ETFs a 25% chance of approval on May 23, down from 70% in January.
However, comments made by SEC Chair Gary Gensler in a May 7 interview with CNBC suggest that the SEC is still considering its judgment on spot Ether ETFs.
The SEC must reach a decision on VanEck's application by May 23, while ARK 21Shares and Hashdex have final deadlines of May 24 and May 30.
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