The SEC lawsuits against Binance and Coinbase continued to weigh on the crypto market this week. Bitcoin is only indirectly affected by this, but in kinship. Ahead of the weekend, however, financial giant BlackRock has thrown in a bit of a surprise. There they continue to believe in the future of the digital key currency.
BlackRock, the world’s largest money manager, filed a regulatory filing for a spot Bitcoin ETF with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday. If the product, called iShares Bitcoin Trust, is approved, it will be listed on the New York technology exchange Nasdaq and give investors easy access to cryptocurrencies.
“The Shares are intended to provide an easy way to make an investment similar to investing in Bitcoin, rather than acquiring, holding and trading Bitcoin directly through a peer-to-peer platform or digital asset exchange.” , says BlackRock’s regulatory filing. A company spokeswoman confirmed the plans for a spot ETF on Bitcoin, but was unable to make any further comments, citing official restrictions in connection with the application.
BlackRock is also trying its luck
With the asset manager BlackRock, which managed assets worth around nine trillion dollars at the end of March, a real heavyweight is entering the fight for approval of the first spot ETF on the digital reserve currency in the USA. Various companies have tried it in the past, but withdrew the applications themselves in the face of massive resistance from the SEC and the low chances of success.
So far, the supervisory authority has complained, among other things, that the corresponding products are susceptible to manipulation and fraud and offer too little investor protection. Therefore, only a few ETFs based on Bitcoin futures, but not Bitcoin directly, are admitted to trading in the USA.
The digital asset manager Grayscale, which would like to convert the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust into a spot ETF, is currently even fighting a lawsuit with the SEC. A judgment is expected later this year – and could result in a veritable flood of such products. BlackRock appears to share the view that Grayscale will win the SEC lawsuit and wants to have “the hat in the ring” in that case, commented James Seyffart of Bloomberg Intelligence.
Coinbase is on board
As the documents further show, the custody of the Bitcoin stocks with which the ETF is deposited is to be taken over by the US crypto company Coinbase. BlackRock and Coinbase already have a strategic partnership that would be deepened as a result. However, the crypto exchange operator is currently facing regulatory trouble itself and was sued by the SEC at the beginning of last week.
Since the SEC lawsuits against Coinbase and Binance, the crypto market has been in turmoil. Only platforms and altcoins in the USA are directly affected, while Bitcoin is left out. However, the effects can be felt worldwide and in almost all coins and tokens. Against this background, BlackRock’s commitment to Bitcoin and Coinbase comes at just the right time.
After Bitcoin temporarily fell below the important $ 25,000 mark in the middle of the week, it was able to move up again after the BlackRock report. On Sunday afternoon it was even quoted around three percent higher at around $26,500 over a 7-day period.
Coinbase stock, meanwhile, ended around 2.5 percent higher on Friday, but is not on the recommended list given the high level of uncertainty surrounding the US litigation. Invested investors stay with BlackRock.
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