Crypto asset management firm Hashdex met with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Office of the Chair on Dec. 26 to discuss the proposed rule changes for its Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) application.
According to the memo, the meeting featured Samantha Ostrom from the SEC Chair’s office, Hashdex Chief Investment Officer Samir Kerbage, and Michael Venuto from Tidal Financial Group. Others at the meeting were Richard Kerr and Peter Shea of K&L Gates and Neel Maitra from the Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati law firm.
Their discussion centered on the NYSE Arca’s proposed rule change to list and trade shares of Hashdex Bitcoin ETF under Rule 8.500-E.
Bloomberg’s ETF analyst James Seyffart noted that a meeting with the SEC Chair’s office was unusual, considering other applicants regularly met other departments of the Commission. He said:
“This meeting was with the chair’s office (Gensler’s office) and different from most meetings we’ve seen which are with ‘trading and markets’ or ‘corporate finance.’”
Meanwhile, this is not the first time the ETF applicant will meet with the regulatory authority. In November, asset manager Hashdex, alongside other applicants, met with the SEC to discuss its proposed spot Bitcoin ETF.
The recent meetings occur amidst mounting expectations for the federal regulator to approve a spot BTC ETF.
Over the past years, the SEC has consistently denied all previous attempts to introduce such a product to the broader investing audience, citing Bitcoin’s susceptibility to market manipulation and the absence of surveillance-sharing agreements, among other issues.
However, observers believe the Commission might have a change of heart, considering its consistent engagements with the applicants and the industry’s overall growth.
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