The Securities and Exchange Commission’s landmark approval of the first-ever spot bitcoin exchange traded funds this week came with a stark reminder of the agency’s divisions over cryptocurrencies and scepticism towards a market some still see as dangerous for investors.
After refusing to greenlight the products for a decade, the SEC’s hand was finally forced by a US federal appeals court ruling last year. On Thursday, 10 spot bitcoin ETFs started trading with SEC approval, from sponsors ranging from established players such as Fidelity and BlackRock to more digital businesses including Grayscale and Ark Invest. One more ETF was still in the process of going live.
It was a watershed moment for a sector that the agency’s chair Gary Gensler has called a “wild west” rife with non-compliance and misconduct, and a big win for the crypto industry after a bitter legal battle with the SEC.