8 months ago
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Amid uncertainty around Ethereum Spot Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs), Grayscale Chief Legal Officer (CLO) Craig Salm has expressed his insights on the subject, addressing the similarities between Ethereum and Bitcoin spot ETFs.
Ethereum Spot ETFs Is Just As Strong As Bitcoin Spot ETFs
Craig Salm appears optimistic about the Ethereum spot ETFs’ approval from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as he believes “the case for the products is just as strong as it was for Bitcoin ETFs.”
The Grayscale’s CLO underscored his unwavering confidence in the products’ approval, despite ongoing negative speculations within the crypto landscape. However, his main goal is to shed light on how the SEC’s engagement with applicants in the situation is perceived.
Addressing the Commission’s engagement, Salm drew the community’s attention to the final months before Bitcoin ETFs were approved, noting that during this period, the SEC engaged with Grayscale and several other issuers positively and contructively.
In addition, there were thoughtful discussions about the specifics of creation/redemption processes, cash vs. in-kind, APs, LPs, custody, and among others. Drawing a parallel between Ethereum and Bitcoin ETFs, Salm stated that the process is identical, suggesting a potential approval.
According to him, the only aspect that proves to be different is that the ETF holds ETH instead of BTC. Thus, issuers essentially have less to interact with at this time because the regulatory watchdog has already engaged in numerous ways.
Due to this, Salm is optimistic despite the uncertainty surrounding the final approval dates, arguing that results should not be determined by what is perceived as a lack of regulatory engagement.
Furthermore, the CLO highlighted his complete alignment with crypto figures such as Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal and Brian Quintenz’s opinions regarding the necessity of approving Ethereum spot ETFs.
It is worth noting that Paul Grawel previously contested the SEC’s stance, claiming that the regulatory agency lacked sufficient evidence to categorize Ethereum as a security or legitimate grounds for rejecting ETH exchange-traded products.
Strong Correlation Between Futures And Spot
While resonating with opinions from the aforementioned figures, Salm supports the approval of ETH ETFs because they should be considered commodity futures and consistent with ETH futures ETFs. This is due to his belief that there is a strong connection between futures and spots.
Finally, Salm asserts that investors want and deserve to be exposed to ETH through ETFs, while underlining Grayscale’s belief that the case for spot Ethereum ETFs reflects similar strength as spot Bitcoin ETFs, reiterating the firm’s support for approval. In the meantime, the company anticipates discussing these significant products with the agency.
So far, the approval odds for the ETH exchange products have witnessed a substantial decline over time. Data from Polymarket reveals that the odds are presently down to around 27%.
Featured image from iStock, chart from Tradingview.com
