The CEO of investment firm VanEck has expressed doubt that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in May. In an interview with CNBC, Jan van Eck stated that his firm’s application for a spot Ethereum ETF will likely be rejected. VanEck and Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest were the first to file for a spot Ether ETF in the US, with final decisions expected on May 23 and May 24 respectively. CoinShares CEO Jean-Marie Mognetti was also pessimistic, stating that he doesn’t anticipate any approvals before the end of the year. The SEC has yet to take action on seven pending applications for spot Ether ETFs. This lack of response has led some commentators, including Senior Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, to believe that an ETF approval in May is increasingly unlikely. Balchunas has lowered the odds of approval from 70% to 35%. Fellow ETF analyst James Seyffart echoed these sentiments, noting that the SEC’s lack of communication is concerning. VanEck’s spot Bitcoin ETF, known as HODL, has seen significant inflows since its launch in January. Van Eck described Bitcoin as a “maturing asset” and highlighted that there are still many investors who have yet to gain exposure to it.
VanEck CEO anticipates May rejection for Ether ETFs