The US Securities and Exchange Commission has postponed its decision on Invesco Galaxy’s application for a spot Ethereum exchange-traded fund.
According to a May 6 filing, the commission has found it appropriate to designate a longer period before approving or disapproving the application. It has given itself another 60 days to make a decision, setting the new deadline to July 5.
“The Commission may extend the period for issuing an order approving or disapproving the proposed rule change, however, by not more than 60 days if the Commission determines that a longer period is appropriate and publishes the reasons for such determination,” the filing detailed.
This is the latest addition on a long line-up of postponed applications, including ones from BlackRock, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton, Hashdex, and Ark21Shares.
The recent development has added to a series of delays by the commission. The SEC has also delayed its decision on a Bitcoin ETF application filed by Valkyrie Digital Assets, an article from Yahoo! shared. It has extended a 45-day window for the decision, originally scheduled for June 26, to August 10.
Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas cited an extended period of regulatory inactivity from the SEC, along with mounting political resistance against SEC Chair Gary Gensler, as factors contributing to the lowering prospects of approval for prospective fund issuers.
Balchunas has revised its forecast on the likelihood for an approval by the end of May from 70% to 25%, a report from CoinGape detailed.
The recent setbacks have raised concerns on the future of digital asset products despite the significant developments in the space since the start of 2024. Earlier this year, the SEC’s landmark approval of the first spot Bitcoin ETF product lifted market sentiment towards cryptocurrencies.