The SEC officially approved the first Bitcoin ETFs for a handful of investment firms, following a period of confusion on social media. Image: Leeloo Thefirst, via Pexels
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) officially approved the first Bitcoin ETFs for a handful of investment firms, following a period of confusion on social media after their account was compromised.
Yesterday, as crypto enthusiasts waited anxiously for the SEC’s official decision on Bitcoin ETFs, the regulator made a post on their official X account confirming the decision – or so it would seem.
Later, it would be revealed that the SEC’s account was compromised by a third party, and the post was made deliberately to mislead onlookers to buy or sell bitcoin prematurely.
The price of Bitcoin has fluctuated wildly amid the confusion of the past day.
Today, however, the real SEC granted some investment companies approval to offer spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, as confirmed by an official statement on the Commission’s website from Chair Gary Gensler.
“Today, the Commission approved the listing and trading of a number of spot bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) shares,” wrote Gensler.
Gensler seemed to have made the decision reluctantly and was critical of the asset on the whole.
“Though we’re merit neutral, I’d note that the underlying assets in the metals ETPs have consumer and industrial uses, while in contrast bitcoin is primarily a speculative, volatile asset that’s also used for illicit activity including ransomware, money laundering, sanction evasion, and terrorist financing.
In the statement, Gensler warned investors that the approval did not equate to endorsement or approval of the cryptocurrency itself.
“While we approved the listing and trading of certain spot bitcoin ETP shares today, we did not approve or endorse bitcoin. Investors should remain cautious about the myriad risks associated with bitcoin and products whose value is tied to crypto.”
Regarding the fraudulent announcement, X’s Safety team investigated the issue and said that the compromise “was not due to any breach of X’s systems” but was the result of an individual obtaining a phone number associated with the @SECGov account through a third party.
“We can also confirm that the account did not have two-factor authentication enabled at the time the account was compromised. We encourage all users to enable this extra layer of security,” wrote @Safety.
Bitcoin prices took a hit during the fake news fiasco but are climbing again following the genuine announcement.
The SEC approved a total of 11 applications, including from BlackRock, Ark Investments, Fidelity, and others, with some expected to commence trading later this week.
