Ethereum ETF applicants submit 19b-4 forms

Five Ethereum (ETH) spot ETF applicants have submitted their 19b-4 forms to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

According to Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart, ETH ETF applicants — Fidelity, VanEck, Invesco/Galaxy, Ark Invest and Franklin Templeton — submitted their Amended 19b-4 forms to the SEC just 25 minutes before the deadline.

19b-4 forms are used to inform the SEC of a proposed rule change.

Per the analyst, the ETF applicants used the 19b-4 forms to remove ETH staking from their investment products. As expected by experts, neither the issuer nor the user can “directly or indirectly” engage in Ethereum staking activities with the ETF.

The Head of Firmwide Research at Galaxy Digital, Alex Thorn, said on May 21 that the SEC could label staked ETH as security in an attempt to approve the ETFs.  

Seyffart also pointed out that the odds of the ETH ETF approval remain at the 75% mark despite the submission of the 19b-4 forms. 

The Bloomberg Intelligence analyst said it could take “weeks or more” before the spot ETH ETFs launch in the U.S.

According to a crypto.news report on May 21, analysts at the Singapore-based trading firm QCP Capital believe that the approval of spot Ethereum ETFs could send the asset’s price above the $5,000 mark.