The Decade-Long War for a Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval and the Next Battle (Volume 57, Number 9—May 8, 2024)
Author: Tiffany J. Smith.; Joseph Toner.; Joshua Nathanson.
Source: Volume 57, Number 09, May 1 2024 , pp.81-91(11)
Abstract:
Prospective issuers have been seeking to launch a spot bitcoin exchange-traded product for over a decade. In January 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission finally approved proposed rule changes to list and trade shares of a spot bitcoin exchange-traded product. But even now, as spot bitcoin exchange-traded products have begun trading, regulators have signaled that both the products themselves and the investment advisers and broker-dealers that recommend the products will be under intense scrutiny. In this article, the authors describe the long path to the approval of spot bitcoin exchange-traded products, the potential for other spot crypto exchange-traded products, and the enforcement risk for investment advisers and broker-dealers.Keywords: Self-Regulatory Organizations; ETP Mechanics, Registration, Regulation; Section 19(b) and Rule 19b-4 Framework; Grayscale
Affiliations:
1: Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP (NY); 2: Wilmer Cutler (DC); 3: Wilmer Cutler (DC).