SEC Chair Yet Again Signals Support for Bitcoin Futures ETF, But says Crypto “Certainly of A Size” to Have Same Safeguards as Banking

Hopes for getting a Bitcoin Futures ETF approval this year have further risen with the US Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler’s latest comments on the investment product, where he reiterated his positive stance on such exchange-traded funds.

In his prepared remarks for the Financial Times’ “The Future of Management North America Conference,” Gensler repeated that there had been several filings under the Investment Company Act with regard to ETFs seeking to invest in CME-traded bitcoin futures.

According to him, the ’40 Act provides “significant investor protections” for mutual funds and ETFs.

“I look forward to staff’s review of such filings.”

Ever since Gensler first made these positive remarks towards Bitcoin Futures ETF in August, several firms, including Valkyrie Investments, VanEck, Proshares, and Invesco, have filed applications for such an ETF.

An ETF makes the product less costly, more transparent, and more tax-efficient than mutual funds for the investors.

The lack of interest may actually calm SEC a bit (who prob worry about too much rush into ETFs). Thus, we sticking with our 75% chance that a bitcoin futures ETF is approved and launches in Oct/Nov with ProShares as huge favorite to be out first. pic.twitter.com/aooW1MZgRu

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) September 29, 2021

Talk to the Agency

Besides supporting Bitcoin Futures ETF, Gensler also continued this criticism of crypto trading and lending platforms that promise returns to investors, which he says won’t avoid the SEC regulation. According to him, these products need the same safeguards against fraud and manipulation as bank depositors or purchasers of mutual funds or insurance policies. He said,

“This crypto space is now certainly of a size that without those investor protections of banking, insurance securities laws market oversight, I do think somebody is going to get hurt.”

“A lot of people are likely to get hurt.”

Recently, Coinbase publicly shared that SEC is threatening to come after it if it launches its Lend product which it at the time decided to postpone to October only to drop it all together later.

Earlier this week, at the Code Conference in Beverly Hills, California, Gensler had declined to comment on remarks made by Coinbase CEO on SEC engaging in “sketchy behavior,” but on Wednesday, he noted that some companies have “said things publicly about some of those conversations.”

Crypto platforms that accepted funds from investors and offered returns “should consider the securities laws carefully and talk to the agency about getting registered,” Gensler said, adding, “Many of them should [register] now — or should have even in the past.”

AnTy has been involved in the crypto space full-time for over two years now. Before her blockchain beginnings, she worked with the NGO, Doctor Without Borders as a fundraiser and since then exploring, reading, and creating for different industry segments.