Its “All Systems Go” for Spot Bitcoin ETF Approval, Senior Analyst Says

cryptonews.com:

It’s “all systems go” as the crypto community waits for SEC approval of a spot bitcoin ETF, according to senior ETF analyst, Eric Balchunas.

“Happy ETF Approval Day (for real this time) to all those who celebrate,” Balchunas, a senior ETF analyst for Bloomberg, posted to X on Wednesday morning. “As far as we know it’s ALL SYSTEMS GO. Most likely is we see formal approvals ballpark 4-6pm today with the Derby starting on Thursday.”

The “derby” seemingly refers to the stiff competition between spot bitcoin ETF hopefuls, which Balchunas in the past has referred to as the “Cointucky Derby.”

New one from me today on how just making it to the starting gate is half the battle for ETF issuers in the Cointucky Derby, it's the race before the race, currently a mad scramble behind scenes to get signed AP agreements, a critical but not easy last step. pic.twitter.com/IF58KQthcV

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) December 27, 2023

Balchunas’ post comes shortly after SEC Chair, Gary Gensler, had to do damage control on Tuesday following a fraudulent post indicating the SEC had approved spot bitcoin ETFs.

“The @SECGov twitter account was compromised, and an unauthorized tweet was posted,”  SEC Chair Gary Gensler posted to X Tuesday Afternoon. “The SEC has not approved the listing and trading of spot bitcoin exchange-traded products.”

Shortly after the SEC’s post, Bitcoin’s price soared to $48,000 before dwindling back down to $44,000. As of early Wednesday afternoon, the cryptocurrency was trading at greater than $45,000.

Gensler faced backlash for the SEC hacking, with Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and JD Vance (R-OH) imbuing the SEC Chair to provide insight and accountability into what happened via a strongly written letter.

“The