For months, crypto investors everywhere have been holding their breath waiting for September 30... the date the SEC had said it would finally deliver its long-awaited decision regarding the VanEck/SolidX Bitcoin ETF.
But, once more, we'll have to wait a little longer...
Late last week, the agency announced it would again be delaying its decision on whether to approve the ETF, pending feedback from the general public. The decision had already been delayed once in August.
Technically, the next deadline for a decision is December 29. But the government could choose to delay a final decision until February 2019.
The hotly anticipated bitcoin ETF would allow investors to buy a stake in bitcoin without having to set up an account on a crypto exchange... or deal with the paperwork and compliance headaches required for investment by major financial institutions.
Many cryptocurrency proponents believe an ETF would allow institutional investors (such as banks, investment funds, etc.) to invest in cryptos for the first time — creating additional demand for top digital currencies like bitcoin and ethereum.
But the path to ETF approval hasn't been straightforward.
The SEC already denied a separate request this summer for the Winklevoss Bitcoin ETF on the basis of regulatory concerns. (The VanEck/SolidX Bitcoin ETF attempts to resolve those issues by setting a price that would be prohibitively expensive for average investors — $200,000 per share.)
Back when the VanEck/SolidX decision was initially pushed out in August, it sent bitcoin prices tumbling.
But this time around, the market barely budged.
Why the difference in reactions from the market?
For one thing, it wasn't a major shock; many market experts predicted that the SEC would once again delay the decision on the ETF.
Also, the SEC didn't outright deny the application, as it did with the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust application in August. This is inherently a good thing — the agency continues to leave open the possibility that the application will be approved.
In fact, the anticipation leading up to the SEC's announcement will cause bitcoin to rally in the coming months, as investors wager that regulators will ultimately give the VanEck/SolidX ETF the green light.
Takeaway:
Bitcoin prices remain largely unchanged this week as regulators postponed a key decision regarding the VanEck/SolidX Bitcoin ETF.
This contrasts with a previous delay, which led to sharp selling... indicating the market likely anticipated this latest delay.
However, with a final deadline approaching early next year, I believe bitcoin will rally as investors attempt to capitalize on growing interest and demand generated by an ETF.
I continue to remain bullish on the future of digital currencies such as bitcoin and ethereum and encourage readers to buy dips.
