- SEC’s S-1 form reviews may take weeks to months to complete.
- Issuers expect multiple rounds of amendments before final approval.
The S-1 forms are the focal point of the ongoing battle to get the spot Ethereum ETFs authorized for trading. The forms need to become operational before trading may start once the 19b-4 forms are approved on May 23.
The forms were not produced in advance, though, because the approvals were the outcome of an SEC last-minute direction change. Still, things are moving forward now.
The US SEC requires spot Ethereum ETF issuers to submit the first round of S-1 draft forms by Friday. BlackRock and VanEck have already submitted them. The SEC will provide the first round of comments and make further modifications. It is expected that at least two rounds of…
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) May 31, 2024
SEC Requests Draft S-1 FilingsÂ
Two persons with knowledge of the matter said that the SEC had requested issuers to turn in their draft S-1 filings by Friday. The SEC will then offer its initial round of comments, which will result in more changes.
VanEck wasted no time turning in a revised version of its S-1 form the day the ETFs were authorized. BlackRock did likewise on May 30, revealing that $10 million would be seeded into its ETF.
Meanwhile, the issuer can incorporate the specifics of the seed investments rather easily, suggesting that other parts of the paperwork could take longer to handle. Prior to their release, they stated that the S-1 forms will undergo at least two more rounds of draft filings.
Analyst Forecasts
Analysts predict that if everything proceeds slowly, the S-1s will take a few weeks to be turned around, maybe even a few months. Some traders counter that there could be benefits to the wait.
As of writing, ETH is valued at about $3,758.31, down 1.00% in the previous 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap data. This also shows a bearish position, with a 1.06% decline within the last 7 days.
Previous to this, ETHNews reported on JPMorgan research that predicted Ethereum Spot ETF demand would be lower than that of Bitcoin.