EMERGING TECH
EMERGING TECH
EMERGING TECH
Bitcoin Investment Trust application withdrawn over fears of SEC rejection
An application by Grayscale Investments LLC to take its Bitcoin Investment Trust public has been withdrawn over fears that it would be rejected by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The trust was seeking to raise $500 million with an investment objective that the registered shares would reflect the performance of the value of bitcoin, before liabilities and expenses of the trust, as represented by the TradeBlock XBX Index.
In a statement, Grayscale said that the NYSE Arca had withdrawn its application as it “does not believe there have been enough regulatory developments to prompt the SEC to approve the Rule 19b‑4 application for the Bitcoin Investment Trust.”
Two previous applications to list bitcoin-related funds were rejected by the SEC in March, the SolidX Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Fund and the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust ETF. In the case of the Winklevoss fund, the SEC said in April that it would review its decision, a review that remains outstanding.
With both rejections, the SEC said the proposed products were not consistent with the requirement that “the rules of a national securities exchange be designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices and to protect investors and the public interest.” It also added that applications failed to satisfy a requirement that the product have surveillance-sharing agreements with “significant markets for trading the underlying commodity or derivatives on that commodity” and that the markets for trading the commodity in question must be regulated.
Although the implications of the application being withdrawn would indicate a negative outlook for listed bitcoin ETFs, others are more hopeful. Proshares Capital Management submitted two new Bitcoin ETF funds for approval by the SEC Sept. 27. According to Coindesk, the ProShares Bitcoin ETF and the ProShares Short Bitcoin ETF are aiming for a maximum aggregate offering price of $1 million, priced at $25 per share, with a plan to have it listed on the NYSE Arca exchange.
Photo: Asy Arch/Wikimedia Commons
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