The issue of whether the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will authorise a spot Bitcoin (BTC) Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) resurfaced when the investment management company BlackRock and its competitors filed proposals for the service.
John Reed Stark, the former head of the SEC’s Office of Internet Enforcement, expressed his thoughts on this prospect on X (formerly known as Twitter).
According to Stark, there are numerous strong reasons why the present U.S. SEC administration is unlikely to authorise a spot BTC ETF.
Stark asserted that professionals from the nonprofit, nonpartisan Better Market organisation had adequately described some of these causes in their SEC Comment Letters dated August 8, 2023.
The previously mentioned letters were sent as a reaction to the various regulation amendments that national securities exchanges had requested in order to list and trade spot BTC Exchange Traded Products (ETPs).
The former head of the SEC, however, thinks that after the elections, the direction of crypto enforcement in the US may alter. Stark is certain that the SEC will change its mind about the emerging bitcoin operation if a Republican is elected president of the United States next year.
The SEC veteran also predicted that the agency would “become far more open to establishing a bitcoin spot ETF and far more inclined to implement additional important crypto-friendly administrative actions.”
According to a statement from Stark, if a Republican is elected as the next president, Gary Gensler, the current chair of the SEC, may retire from the agency. Hester Peirce, known as ‘Crypto Mom’ in the sector, might take over as acting Chair if this eventually occurs.
The latest campaign statement made by Ron DeSantis lends some support to Stark’s position on a Republican governance in the United States. The Republican presidential candidate and current governor of Florida has repeatedly stated his backing for Bitcoin and his intention to defend the most popular digital currencies if elected.
Since the election won’t be over until 2024, it’s likely that permission for a spot BTC ETF won’t be attainable until then.
