Benzinga - Steven McClurg is optimistic the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) might greenlight a spot Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the near term, possibly heralding a significant influx of investment dollars.
McClurg is the chief investment officer at Valkyrie, which oversees two ETFs with assets totaling $51.1 million. He believes persistent concerns such as market manipulation and asset pricing, which previously led to the SEC's refusals, have been adequately addressed in recent proposals.
This development aligns closely with the themes to be discussed at Benzinga's Future of Digital Assets conference on Nov. 14, where market innovation and regulatory breakthroughs will likely be hot topics.
As anticipation builds, the Bitcoin market has seen a surge with the cryptocurrency's value reaching its peak in May of the previous year. Investment giants such as BlackRock Inc. (NYSE: BLK), Fidelity Investments and Grayscale Investments are among those eagerly awaiting the SEC's nod to transition from Bitcoin futures to holding actual Bitcoin in their ETFs.
McClurg foresees another round of feedback from the SEC before the end of the month, which could lead to the approval of rule changes.
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He predicts any late November approvals would likely result in ETF launches by February, as firms finalize their S-1 filings in response to SEC inquiries.
SEC Chair Gary Gensler acknowledges the organization is currently reviewing several spot Bitcoin ETF applications.
The potential market impact of such an ETF is significant with McClurg estimating around $10 billion in demand shortly after the launch.
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