As the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) nears its decision on the spot Bitcoin ETF, companies awaiting approval for their ETF applications have lined up for meetings with SEC officials. This is particularly noteworthy as it coincides with a period where Bitcoin’s price has started to rise amid increased expectations for the approval of the first spot Bitcoin ETF in the US.
Spot Bitcoin ETF Now a Major Corporate Priority for BlackRock
BlackRock, the world’s largest asset management company, appears particularly eager to discuss with the SEC. As known, the company was one of the first to apply for a spot Bitcoin ETF with the SEC in June 2023. If BlackRock’s ETF is approved, considering the company manages $9 trillion, it would mean significant institutional adoption for the cryptocurrency market. Indeed, news flow suggests that BlackRock is impatient to bring about this institutional adoption.
According to FOX Business, BlackRock has focused on obtaining SEC approval for the spot Bitcoin ETF, making it a significant corporate priority:
Blackrock has made obtaining SEC approval for its spot Bitcoin ETF application a significant corporate priority.
BlackRock has had up to three meetings with SEC officials in just seven business days, the latest being on December 19, 2023. Grayscale, which aims to convert the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into a spot Bitcoin ETF, also met with the US federal regulator on December 19, 2023.
Bitcoin Whales Are Making a Comeback
On the other hand, on-chain data indicates that Bitcoin whales re-entered positions they had taken before on December 20, 2023. This has been a catalyst for the price of the largest cryptocurrency to reach the $44,000 level.
The data shows that around 22 whale-level wallet addresses have taken positions in anticipation of a price rise, and the continuous decline in the number of wallet addresses holding over 100 BTC has halted in the last two weeks.
