SEC Begins Review of NYSE Arca’s Bitcoin ETF Rule Change

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has already began reviewing a rule change recommendation for NYSE Arca’s Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) on February 11, according to an official document that was just released.

The notice indicated that the NYSE Arca exchange filed a rule change proposal to list and trade shares of the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF Trust under its NYSE Arca Rule 8.201-E late last month.

The SEC is now set to provide a first decision to ratify or reject the proposal within 45 days beginning from the day of publication of the announcement, February 15. In the case that the securities regulator discovers that it needs more time to evaluate the proposal, it might prolong the review period for up to 90 days and should publicize the reasons for delaying the decision.

As the notice says, the general public can forward feedback on the rule change proposal by March 8, 2019, in the form of written data, view and arguments.

NYSE Arca and Bitwise have disclosed plans to introduce Bitcoin ETFs in January. NYSE Arca reportedly filed for permission to launch a number of Bitcoin-related ETFs during one week in 2018. The exchange is seeking to launch five different ETFs linked to both bull and bear futures contracts listed on NYSE Arca. The ETFs would reportedly be linked to the price of Bitcoin futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE).