U.S. SEC Gives Green Light to Spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs

In January 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) made a significant regulatory breakthrough by approving 11 spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), attracting considerable interest from institutional investors. Currently, there are 12 spot bitcoin ETFs in existence, which together hold over 1 million bitcoins. This increased accessibility has led to a surge in institutional demand for bitcoin, with Blackrock’s Ishares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) achieving the distinction of the most successful ETF launch in history due to its exceptional performance.

In the early part of the year, Grayscale’s GBTC held approximately 620,000 BTC, while the newly established funds managed to acquire an additional 580,000 bitcoins. Notably, around 413,165 BTC were transferred from GBTC to other funds, according to data from timechainindex.com.

The SEC continued to surprise the market by approving spot ether ETFs as well. On July 23, 2024, nine ether ETFs were launched, attracting an impressive $2.64 billion in inflows since their inception. These funds currently manage about $12.19 billion worth of ether, accounting for 3% of the asset’s total market value, as reported by sosovalue.com. Meanwhile, the 12 bitcoin ETFs collectively manage $106.40 billion in bitcoins, which represents 5.69% of bitcoin’s total market capitalization.