Nearly 40% of financial advisors say they are confident Bitcoin ETFs will be available to U.S. investors in 2024. The rest weren’t so sure, according to a Bitwise poll.
This is an interesting result, considering that most market observers believe the SEC’s blessing for the Bitcoin ETF is likely a fait accompli. As cryptocurrency giant Grayscale wrote in early December, the question is not if, but when. But most professionals tasked with advising clients on investments aren’t very confident, says Bitwise.
The survey found that 88% of respondents interested in purchasing Bitcoin on behalf of clients are waiting for an ETF to launch, even though the majority of advisors believe it is unlikely that a Bitcoin ETF will be approved this year.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs provide a way for investors to add Bitcoin exposure to their portfolios without actually purchasing and holding Bitcoin. This means you get all the benefits of the market without the overhead of figuring out how to use hardware wallets or private keys.
About six in 10 of those surveyed said their clients are dabbling in cryptocurrencies in addition to their relationships with financial advisors. Bitwise said this is a promising sign for companies considering whether to launch cryptocurrency products.
The survey also found that the number of customers allocating funds to cryptocurrencies decreased slightly from 15% in 2022 and 16% in 2021 to 11% in 2023. However, this is still higher than in 2020 and 2019, when there were fewer than 10 people. % of customers wanted part of their portfolio in cryptocurrency.
Please keep in mind: Bitwise is not asking idly about the odds of a Bitcoin ETF being approved for trading in your state. The company has some skin in the game. The application to register the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF trust was first submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2019, but was rejected.
Bitwise resubmitted its application in 2021 but was rejected again. But the company is hoping the third time will be the charm. The company publicly challenged the SEC’s denial in September, revised its application and resubmitted it in November 2023. Among other changes, it is now called the “Bitwise Bitcoin ETF”.
Bitwise and VettaFi collected responses from 437 financial advisors between October 20 and December 18. Because it takes so much time to analyze so much survey data and turn it into polished reports, results are published several weeks after the last response.
After the survey was completed, more details were leaked about what the SEC would like to see in applicants before approving a Bitcoin ETF trading. Recently, just before Christmas, applicants were required to disclose approved participants in their S-1 registrations and specify that they preferred to create and settle shares in cash rather than Bitcoin.
Most major applicants, such as BlackRock, Fidelity and Cathie Wood’s Ark, have updated their applications to include approved participants. And earlier today, Bitcoin ETF competitors Grayscale, Ark, VanEck, and Valkyrie filed notices with the SEC saying they have received approval from their respective exchanges, including the Chicago Board Options Exchange (Cboe), to begin trading once regulators approve them. . Green light.
Edited by Stacey Elliott.
