The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission held a meeting today with cryptocurrency asset manager Grayscale to discuss the potential listing of a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). This follows the SEC’s previous refusal of a bitcoin-backed ETF proposed by Bitwise Asset Management last month.
The meeting was held at the SEC’s headquarters in Washington D.C. and was attended by Grayscale CEO Barry Silbert and representatives of the SEC.
According to attendees, the meeting was “productive” and Grayscale representatives presented data to the SEC about the prices, trading volumes and liquidity of bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies to try to demonstrate the market’s maturity.
The group is said to have discussed the overall cryptocurrency market, the institutional investor appetite, the need for strong investor protection, and the advantages of a spot bitcoin ETF as an alternative to current investment and trading options.
Grayscale’s filing for a bitcoin-backed ETF is still pending review but today’s meeting could be a sign the the SEC is taking a more openminded approach to cryptocurrency ETFs. It’s still too soon to say whether or not the proposal will be approved, however, so investors should be cautious before assuming too much.
