Bitcoin ETF Issuers VanEck, CoinShares Pessimistic SEC Will Approve Ethereum Applications

VanEck and CoinShares, issuers of the spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) approved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), are not optimistic about the regulator also approving spot Ethereum (ETH) ETF applications amid delays in the SEC's original deadline for a decision.

Jan van Eck, CEO of New York-based investment management firm VanEck, had a gloomy view of the company's spot ETH application when he spoke with CNBC at the Paris Blockchain Week cryptocurrency event in France this week.

"We are the first to file as well for ethereum in the U.S., and we and [Ark Invest CEO] Cathy Wood, are kind of the first in line for May, I guess, to probably be rejected," he said. "The way the legal process goes is the regulators will give you comments on your applications, and that happened for weeks and weeks before the bitcoin ETFs – and right now, pins are dropping as far as ethereum is concerned," he added.

Jean-Marie Mognetti, CEO of crypto exchange-traded products (ETP) firm CoinShares, had similar insights. "I don't see anything being approved this side of the year," he said. CoinShares isn't among the companies that filed for an ETH ETF in the U.S., but Mognetti noted that the company is "observing the ethereum decision very, very closely."

The pessimistic views from VanEck and CoinShares leaders came days after the SEC delayed its decision on spot Ethereum ETF applications and asked for public comment on the applications of Fidelity, Grayscale, and Bitwise.

Adding to the apprehension, Bloomberg analysts noted that silence from the regulator isn't a good signal. Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas pointed out that the regulator hasn't offered "critical feedback" to companies that applied. "Silence is violence," he wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Balchunas was commenting on a scoop by the CEO of investment advisor ETF Store Nate Geraci regarding "growing evidence that it won't be such smooth sailing for Ether" compared to Bitcoin's experience with the SEC.

James Seyffart, another Bloomberg analyst, noted that just because the SEC asked for public comments doesn't mean it is a positive signal since such a move is a "standard process" and "it's not 'bullish' in any capacity for #Ethereum ETFs." He previously noted that "silence from the SEC isn't a good thing here."

Meanwhile, there is growing concern over consistent outflows within Grayscale's Bitcoin ETF. The crypto asset manager also moved 6,200 Bitcoins worth $442 million Tuesday, triggering a wave of watchful comments among crypto users on X. It remains to be seen how the outflows will affect Grayscale's spot Ether ETF application.