Crypto Really (Really) Wants a Bitcoin ETF

The crypto universe has spoken: they want a bitcoin ETF and they want it now.

As CoinDesk previously reported, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sought comments earlier this summer on the latest effort to get an exchange-traded fund tied to bitcoin approved and listed.

That comments period is now closed, and the SEC is ostensibly going over the input it received – but what the agency ultimately decides is anyone's guess.

These comments are just a snippet of the 250 that have been made in light of a proposed rule change that would, if approved, give permission to Cboe and blockchain technology firm SolidX to launch a regulated bitcoin ETF.

Dubbed the VanEck SolidX Bitcoin Trust, the proposed ETF would be priced from a bundle of crypto-assets that fluctuates in value primarily in accordance with over-the-counter trading desks, as opposed to online cryptocurrency exchanges.

In addition, SolidX would offer insurance for investors covering loss or theft of bitcoins held by the trust, differentiating it from the most recent bid for a regulated crypto ETF led by the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust.

As a result of the SEC's request – and the intense interest in such a topic as demonstrated in the past – economists, CEOs, CIOs, consultants, financial analysts, and more have sent in their comments, all published indiscriminately in a series of posts ranging from the thoughtful to the blatantly comical.