VanEck, SolidX, and Cboe representatives recently met with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a final attempt to convince them of the viability of their ETF application, it emerged over the weekend. The trio met with members of the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance, Division of Trading and Markets, Division of Economic and Risk Analysis and Office of General Counsel last week to discuss the Cboe’s proposal to “list and trade shares of the VanEck SolidX Bitcoin Trust…”. This submission is seen by many as the most likely ETF to be approved first by the SEC.
Bitcoin a “Money Substitute”
Van Eck, the investment company that wants to add the Bitcoin ETF to their portfolio, combined with blockchain service SolidX and the Cboe to submit an application for a Bitcoin ETF in June, which has since encountered several delays. In the presentation that they put to the SEC as part of the meeting, VanEck and SolidX claims that, like more traditional assets such as gold and silver, Bitcoin acted as a “money substitute”, adding that the combination of spot and futures trading showed that the Bitcoin market was “evidence of a well-functioning capital market”.
Countering claims of market manipulation, the submission contends that so-called traditional assets are in fact more prone to such activity because of inside information, discovery of new sources of supply. and “significant disruptions” at production sites. They also state that Bitcoin’s existence as a uniform worldwide market, rather than a geo-specific entity such as oil, offers advantages in the arbitrage process.
Festive Cheer for Bitcoin Holders?
The SEC announced in August that a decision on the VanEck/SolidX proposal would be delayed until the end of the following month, to which the markets reacted negatively. Those with experience in the workings of such government bodies doubted that September would see a definite resolution. Sure enough, in September the SEC asked for public comments on the ETF application, further delaying the process, although the lack of an outright rejection was viewed positively.
The current deadline is December 29, although the SEC can push this deadline back to February next year if they feel they need more time. This is not the first meeting that VanEck and SolidX have had with the SEC to try and promote their case. There is a growing optimism that this could end up being a very happy Christmas indeed for Bitcoin holders, of which they are in great need after an 82% slump in the price of the asset this year.
