“Rumor mill” ramps up for the approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF

Despite doubts from some analysts, comments on Crypto X have raised expectations that regulators may approve a spot Bitcoin ETF on Friday. On social media, there is intense speculation that the SEC will approve a spot Bitcoin BTC $44,074 exchange-traded fund (ETF) on Friday. 

A widely shared tweet from a reporter and a tweet from Grayscale’s legal officer, stating he was “just filling out some forms,” has fueled the possibility that clearance could received the next day. TechCrunch reporter Jacquelyn Melinek, in a tweet on January 4, mentioned that she was “expecting something tomorrow” and that many ETFs would approved, referencing people “extremely close to the matter.”

 Some have shown a special interest in a mysterious tweet that Grayscale’s chief legal officer sent, claiming he was “Just filling out some forms.” Since it posted, the tweet has received 1.9 million views and 6,700 likes.

In the meantime, the phrase “Bitcoin ETFs” and the hashtag #BTCETF are trending on Twitter right now. According to TradingView statistics, the price of Bitcoin has also been rising after its sudden drop on January 3rd, rising 3.4% on the last day.

 The trader Scott Melkor responded to the back-and-forth chatter on social media by saying, “The rumor mill is going full steam.”

Analysts splash cold water on rumors

The majority of the chatter surrounding a Jan. 5 approval, according to Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart, is all noise, and he still believes approval will come between Jan. 8 and Jan. 10.

In a similar vein, lawyer and commercial litigator Joe Carlasare noted that multiple ETF applications have a public comment period that ends at midnight on January 5. This, in his opinion, makes it “very unlikely” that approval will be granted before the beginning of next week. Senior Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas clarified that issuers will shortly file their final 19b-4 and S-1 forms following the SEC’s current final remarks.

The SEC must approve both forms before an ETF can commence trading; however, the spot Bitcoin ETF can only receive approval if the 19b-4 form is granted. Scott Johnsson, the general partner of VB Capital, expressed skepticism that the SEC would grant clearance for the ETF before next week.

Johnsson commented, “Unless there are 19b-4 [applications] that are already all clear and the SEC doesn’t care about simultaneous approval (seems a stretch?)”A total of 14 issuers, including Bitwise, Fidelity, ARK Invest/21 Shares, Valkyrie, BlackRock, and Fidelity, are fighting for a spot in the Bitcoin ETF.