Many had looked forward to the SEC’s decision in these ETF applications following Grayscale’s victory, hoping that the legal loss would have softened the regulator into approving these applications.
Following this extension, the SEC will have another 45 days to review these applications and choose whether to approve, deny, or delay its decision. The regulator also has a maximum of 240 days to decide whether or not to approve or disapprove these applications. However, it has several key deadlines in between.
Many have projected the approval of a Spot Bitcoin ETF as one of the key events that could spark a significant surge in Bitcoin’s price (as we saw how the market reacted following Grayscale’s victory). However, the SEC’s decision to delay these applications shows that it is not ready to back down just yet, and there could be continued resistance to approving a Spot Bitcoin ETF.