Former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairman Jay Clayton has considered the possibility of a Bitcoin (BTC) spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the United States, and the SEC will consider approving a spot ETF if the spot market has similar protections as the futures market. He said it would be hard to resist.
Clayton, now senior policy adviser at law firm Sullivan & Cromwell, spoke on CNBC on Monday about the recent approval of several BTC futures ETFs by the SEC and how this could affect the chances of a BTC spot ETF.
“Spot ETF Will Be Approved If Spot Bitcoin Market Has Similar Protections To Futures”
“If they are right that the spot market has similar activity to the futures market, it will be hard to resist approving a Bitcoin ETF,” Clayton said.
However, Clayton did not offer a timeline or prediction as to when the BTC spot ETF might receive approval from the SEC.
He also explained the rationale behind the SEC's preference for futures-based ETFs over spot-based ETFs, referring to the oversight and protections that exist in the regulated futures market.
“When the SEC approved a futures ETF, they said, 'Look at the futures market, we can see oversight, we see that the protections in this market are sufficient for the investor,'” Clayton said.
*Not investment advice.
