VanEck Files for Bitcoin Strategy ETF with the SEC

Global asset management company VanEck has filed for a new Bitcoin Futures ETF under Act 40 with the SEC.

As a result, VanEck becomes the fourth firm to file a similar product with the SEC within the space of a week. 

Bitcoin Futures ETF Filing 

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas revealed this development on August 10, 2021, via Twitter. According to the Tweet, the exchange-traded fund will consist of Bitcoin futures and other Bitcoin funds. 

VanEck just filed for a “Bitcoin Strategy ETF” which will hold bitcoin futures and other bitcoin funds(just like Invesco’s last week). This is the 4th bitcoin futures filing under the 40 Act that Gensler signaled were more likely to be approved. pic.twitter.com/WOdYPID2OQ

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) August 10, 2021

Balchunas also added that this was the fourth major ETF listing in the space of a week.

It is understood that the development comes after SEC chairman Gary Gensler indicated that the Bitcoin Futures ETF had better chances of getting approval than other bitcoin financial products. 

Invesco had become the first company to file an ETF within hours of the comments last week, and more firms have taken suit. Nevertheless, it isn’t easy to know if the financial regulator will grant their applications. 

Up to a dozen, ETF proposals are currently under consideration by the SEC, including VanEck’s recent filing.

However, the SEC has not indicated fixed timelines for approving the first Bitcoin ETF in the US, and there are thoughts that the regulator is heavily scrutinizing applications. The current SEC chief Gensler appears to be open to considering Bitcoin ETFs compared to his predecessor Jay Clayton. 

VanEck’s Previous ETF Applications 

VanEck is no stranger to filing Exchange-traded Funds and earlier submitted an application to launch an Ethereum ETF. The asset management firm had also filed for Bitcoin ETFs several times with no avail under the previous SEC regime of Jay Clayton. 

Despite its failures in the US, VanEck has been able to find relative success in Europe, which has been open to exchange-traded funds. As a result, the company launched its first crypto ETF earlier in the year named VanEck Vectors Digital Assets Equity UCITS ETF (DAPP). 

The ETF was listed on the London Stock Exchange as well as the Deutsche Boerse exchange in Germany.

The crypto ETF is designed to track the MVIS Global Digital Assets Equity Index. This metric follows the performance of the biggest and most liquid companies that operate within the digital asset ecosystem.