In a landmark decision, the Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the applications for spot Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) exchange-traded funds.
The decision is expected to revolutionize the cryptocurrency and traditional finance sectors.
The SEC approved applications of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF, the Hashdex Bitcoin ETF, the iShares Bitcoin Trust, the Valkyrie Bitcoin Fund, the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF, the Invesco Galaxy Bitcoin ETF, the VanEck Bitcoin Trust, the WisdomTree Bitcoin Fund, the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund , and the Franklin Bitcoin ETF.
"... the Commission finds good cause to approve the proposals on an accelerated basis," the SEC stated.
In a release, SEC chair Gary Gensler said that in light of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia's decision, which said the SEC's reasoning in the Grayscale order disapproval was inadequate, the SEC approved Bitcoin ETF applications.
He further said the watchdog's decision is confined to exchange-traded products (ETPs) holding Bitcoin and that it should in no way signal the Commission’s willingness to approve listing standards for crypto asset securities.
"Nor does the approval signal anything about the Commission’s views as to the status of other crypto assets under the federal securities ...