A JPMorgan executive has recently predicted a 50% chance of a spot Ethereum ETF being approved in May. Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, a Managing Director for JPMorgan, expressed his views on the matter, stating that for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to approve spot Ethereum ETFs in May, Ethereum would need to be classified as a commodity, similar to Bitcoin, rather than a security. However, he also noted that this is far from certain and he wouldn’t put more than a 50% chance on the SEC classifying Ethereum as a commodity before May.
Panigirtzoglou further added that the SEC continues to view all other cryptocurrencies outside Bitcoin as securities. His comments were in reference to a statement from SEC chair Gary Gensler regarding spot Bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) approvals. Gensler identified Bitcoin as a non-security commodity and clarified that the approvals should not signal the SEC’s views on the securities status of other crypto assets. He also stated that the “vast majority of crypto assets are investment contracts” and therefore under federal securities laws.
Despite Panigirtzoglou’s low approval estimate, other sources have predicted higher odds for an upcoming spot Ethereum ETF approval. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, for instance, has predicted a 70% chance of such an approval by May. A prediction market on Polymarket suggests a 57% chance of an Ethereum ETF approval by May 31, based on over $15,000 worth of cryptocurrency bets.
The focus on May is due to the SEC’s decision deadline on a spot Ethereum ETF application from VanEck, which is set for May 23. Other applicants including BlackRock, Fidelity, VanEck, ARK Invest, and Invesco Galaxy have also filed for spot Ethereum ETFs, but their decision deadlines are later. It’s worth noting that the SEC approved a number of ETFs that included Ethereum futures in October 2023, but has not yet approved a spot Ethereum ETF.
This News Article was automatically generated by Bob the Bot (AI)
| Information | Details |
|---|---|
| Geography | North America |
| Countries | 🇺🇸 |
| Sentiment | neutral |
| Relevance Score | 1 |
| People | Eric Balchunas, Gary Gensler, Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou |
| Companies | VanEck, Bloomberg, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Invesco Galaxy, ARK Invest, Fidelity, BlackRock, The Block, JPMorgan |
| Currencies | Bitcoin, Ethereum |
| Securities | None |
