Despite recent false reports that rocked the cryptosphere, the hype surrounding the potential approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has not faded.
Adding to the excitement, Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz has expressed strong confidence in the looming approval of spot market ETFs in the United States.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs Coming This Year?
According to Galaxy Digital’s Mike Novogratz, the possibility of having a spot Bitcoin ETF listed on the U.S. market by year’s end is now a near certainty.
Novogratz is convinced that a spot Bitcoin ETF will see approval by the end of this year. “It’s gonna get approved. We think it happens this year, in 2023,” he said during a Wednesday appearance on CNBC. “Talking to all the other people, it just feels like the dialogue with the SEC is all heading in the right direction.”
The billionaire investor points to the fact that the SEC was recently excoriated by the U.S. Court of Appeals for its biased decision in denying Grayscale’s spot product while greenlighting materially similar futures-based ETFs. According to him, the SEC is now under a “tremendous amount of pressure” to approve the product after the court loss.
Novogratz also cited the increasing public demand for a regulated spot-based crypto ETF, stressing BlackRock’s strong support of Bitcoin and its plans to list such an investment product.
Changing SEC Stance
The Galaxy Digital CEO also pointed to the notable shift in tone from the Securities and Exchange Commission. He mentions public filings and comment periods as signs of more constructive discussions with potential ETF providers.
“When you go to the comment period and what they’re asking about, [it] all seems much more specific than general,” Novogratz posited.
Market analysts now expect the SEC to go ahead and give the green light to the long list of ETF filings pending review. For Bitcoin optimists, an SEC approval would legitimize not only the alpha crypto but the entire crypto industry.
If a spot ETF is approved in 2023, as Novogratz predicts, his investment firm, which has teamed up with Invesco on a spot bitcoin ETF application, would certainly benefit.
