The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed its decision on approving spot Ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF) from Franklin Templeton, initially anticipated for May, to a new deadline of June 11.
The SEC also delayed the deadline for the agency’s decision on Grayscale’s spot Ethereum ETF application to June 23.
Meanwhile, the SEC is soliciting public feedback on a revised ETF proposal from BlackRock, which now includes a cash redemption model, a change from the original direct Ethereum exchange mechanism.
BlackRock’s proposal, initially submitted in November 2023, has been revised to better align with the SEC’s regulatory framework, mirroring the cash redemption feature of previously approved Bitcoin ETFs.
The SEC has maintained a cautious approach to cryptocurrency ETFs despite approving spot Bitcoin ETFs earlier in the year.
The Bitcoin ETFs, approved in January, have since provided investors a regulated trading vehicle for the cryptocurrency and have experienced a cumulative total net inflow of US$12.42 billion.
The potential approval of Ethereum ETFs would provide investors with access to the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, marking another step toward the integration of digital assets into conventional investment portfolios.