The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed its decision on approving the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index (BCI) exchange-traded fund (ETF) and the Grayscale Ethereum Trust.
The SEC announced on Thursday that it was seeking more time to consider the proposed ETFs. The SEC stated that it was extending its decision deadline on the Hashdex Bitcoin ETF to February 8th and on the Grayscale Ether ETF to March 5th.
This is the second time that the SEC has postponed the approval of the funds. In December, the regulator postponed its decision on the Bitcoin ETF until February 3rd.
The Hashdex Bitcoin ETF, which was proposed by Nasdaq-listed asset manager Hashdex, tracks the Nasdaq Crypto Index. The fund will invest in bitcoin futures and derivatives as well as other investment products that provide exposure to Bitcoin.
Meanwhile, the Grayscale Ethereum Trust is a proposed fund from the Grayscale Investments division of digital asset manager CoinDesk. The fund will track the price of Ethereum and the performance of Ether-based investment products.
The SEC had previously opposed both ETFs on the grounds that their trading activities were not sufficiently regulated and did not prevent investors from being exposed to market manipulation. If approved, both ETFs could make it easier for crypto companies to list on the stock exchange and open up investment opportunities for more investors.
