After spot ETFs (exchange-traded funds) were approved, would-be issuers had to wait for their products to debut. This has led to a lot of commentary and speculation about the possible date of final approvals for Ethereum ETFs.
Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas is the latest figure to predict when Ethereum ETFs could launch in the US.
Why Ethereum Spot ETFs May Start Trading by July 2
at recent days Share on X platform, Balchunas introduced July 2, 2024, as the new expected date for when Ethereum ETFs could begin trading. This update is based on the SEC's response to issuers on Friday, June 14.
According to the ETF expert, the SEC made “very light” comments on bond issuers’ S-1 forms, without any major issues to address. Balchunas also stated that the committee expects exporters to respond to these comments within a week.
The SEC approved Forms 19b-4 for eight potential issuers, most notably BlackRock, Fidelity, Van Eck, and Franklin Templeton. The agency will also need to greenlight S-1 forms to launch Ethereum ETFs.
Balchunas wrote in his X post:
Good chance they'll work on getting the announcement into effect the following week and getting it off their agenda before the weekend. Anything is possible but this is our best guess so far.
Note: We had a previous over/under on the 4th of July so this isn't a huge shift but 1) we're starting to feel like it's going to take longer so that's kind of good news and b) we're essentially deciding the over/under on where the 50-50 is most torn On where to bet July 2nd is that date now.
– Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) June 14, 2024
Recently, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler told senators during a budget hearing that final approvals for Ethereum ETFs should end by summer. The eventual launch of these products is expected to attract significant capital inflows into the second largest cryptocurrency and the market.
Demand for Ethereum is on the rise ahead of the ETF launch
The latest on-chain data shows that there is a growing demand for Ethereum, especially from frequent investors. This revelation is based on the significant rise in CryptoQuant's perpetual token holder inflows metric.
Perpetual holders, or holders, refer to participants who can choose to hold a cryptocurrency for longer periods and will not be easily exited due to market fluctuations. According to the on-chain analytics firm, this is the type of investor Harvest 298,000 BTC on Wednesday, June 12.
Considering how much has been acquired by permanent holders, institutions are likely responsible for this acquisition, as they try to position themselves well in the market ahead of the imminent launch of Ethereum spot ETFs.
ETH price approaching $3,600 on the daily timeframe | Source: ETHUSDT chart on TradingView
Featured image by Bernard Marr, chart from TradingView