BlackRock Could Make History If Its Spot Bitcoin ETF Gets Approved

BlackRock, the largest investment firm in the world, has submitted an application for a Bitcoin Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) in the United States. If approved, it would be the first crypto spot ETF in the country. Other applicants, such as ARK and Grayscale, are still waiting for a response from the U.S SEC.

The new BlackRock iShares Bitcoin Trust would reportedly trade as Commodity-Based Trust Shares. According to the application, Coinbase Custody Trust Company would serve as the custodian for the Bitcoin holdings of the fund, while Bank of New York Mellon would handle custody of fiat currencies.The Bitcoin price would also be updated at least every 15 seconds using the CF Benchmarks Index during regular market trading.

The application highlights that previous spot exchange-traded products in commodities and currency markets were generally unregulated, and the Commission relied on the underlying futures market for approval. Therefore, the proposal does not require the spot Bitcoin market to be regulated for the Commission to approve it.

Despite several applicants, the SEC has not yet approved a spot Bitcoin ETF. Grayscale even appealed its rejection and argued for the validity of Bitcoin futures. Other firms like ARK Invest and 21Shares have also been pushing for spot Bitcoin ETF approval, submitting their third applications in April. The first spot traded Bitcoin ETF was established in Canada in early 2021, known as Purpose Bitcoin ETF.