Another American company applied for the BTC Futures ETF

Another company has been added to the list of applicants for the “hybrid” BTC Futures ETF. It is Bitwise, which in the meantime is also applying to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for permission for the traditional spot BTC ETF.

The BTC Futures ETF is an ETF that is tied to the trading of BTC futures contracts, which in the US are the largest traded on Chicago’s CME. It is therefore not tied to the traditional direct spot trading of BTC on common exchanges. According to SEC chief Gary Gensler, this type of BTC ETF is more likely to be approved because the SEC can regulate it more easily (but many experts disagree).

One way or another, Gary Gensler’s statement has given companies that want to offer BTC ETFs a clear signal to try to get a permit for at least this less interesting type of ETF. That’s why Valkyrie, ProShares, Invesco, VanEck and Galaxy Digital are currently applying for BTC Futures ETFs. Well, the latest addition was Bitwise, which, like Valkyrie, VanEck and Galaxy Digital, is also asking for traditional spot Bitcoins ETFs.

Grayscale Investments chief Michael Sonnenshein said a few days ago that prioritizing BTC Futures ETFs over BTC ETFs makes no sense, and it’s the same as prioritizing one child over another. Fidelity said in a report to the SEC that a futures ETF on BTC would be an unnecessary transitional step, as the BTC market is already large enough and ready for a traditional spot ETF.