Bitcoin ETF decision unlikely to be delayed due to SEC hack — Commentators

Some suggest the SEC could use the recent unauthorized post as an excuse to delay an ETF approval, but most see it only as a remote possibility.

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will likely still decide whether to approve spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) this week despite opening an investigation into a recent hack of its social media account.

The SEC’s X account was compromised on Jan. 9, leading to an unknown party using the account to post that spot Bitcoin ETFs were approved in the United States. The message was deleted around 20 minutes later but caused widespread ruckus on social media and in the markets. The SEC reportedly said it is engaging with law enforcement to get to the bottom of the incident. 

Fwiw, at least one prospective spot bitcoin ETF issuer is concerned SEC “hack” could result in approval delay…

My take? There’s a *hard* deadline tomorrow. All indications point toward approval.

There’s a regulatory process to follow here. That doesn’t involve X.

via @Reuters pic.twitter.com/O1hiV2mI4z

— Nate Geraci (@NateGeraci) January 10, 2024

Some commentators worry the blunder could be used as an excuse to delay the decision beyond the anticipated Jan. 10 deadline, though most see this as only a remote possibility.

“It depends on the intention of the SEC. If the SEC is looking for ways to continue delaying the ETF process, it’s possible they could use this as a reason to slow down the rollout,” said Dennis Porter, CEO of Satoshi Action Fund, in a note to Cointelegraph.

Porter noted that his contacts still indicate the SEC will give the green light to the spot Bitcoin ETF applicants on Jan. 10.

“However, everything I am hearing from my contacts would suggest that the ETF will be here as late as this week and as early as tomorrow.”

U.S. attorney and commercial litigator Joe Carlasare said anything is possible but also leaned heavily toward the SEC still making a decision by the Jan. 10 deadline.

“Anything is possible, but I find [it] to be extremely unlikely [that] they aren’t going to approve or reject based on this incident,” Carlasare told Cointelegraph.

However, the securities regulator could use the false post to suit a delay agenda, suggests Mati Greenspan of cryptocurrency-focused finance firm Quantum Economics.

“I can certainly see a situation where the SEC would try to use this fiasco as a way to delay the ETF approval. It wouldn’t be the first time they’ve used underhanded methods to force their agenda on the markets.”

Part of me is like. Yea he kinda has a point — this is a bad look. But at the same time this is on the SEC for not having 2FA on their account. Would it still be #Bitcoin or Crypto’s fault if the compromisoor tweeted that the SEC was filing an enforcement action against @Tesla? https://t.co/sBySYfPXmY

— James Seyffart (@JSeyff) January 9, 2024

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said he’s still anticipating official approval of the spot Bitcoin ETFs sometime between 4:00 pm and 5:00 pm Eastern Time (9:00 pm an 10:00 pm UTC) on Jan. 10.

Related: Lawyers, politicians call for investigation of SEC over Bitcoin ETF post

Digital asset lawyer Anthony Tu-Sekine of Seward and Kissel reportedly told The New York Post he didn’t believe the incident would change the likelihood of approvals at this late stage.

Tu-Sekine said he wasn’t sure why someone would do something like that when the approval was already widely anticipated. “This is really puzzling,” Tu-Sekine said.

What if this was an inside job? Is the only way to stop or delay a Bitcoin ETF is to create an event like this?

It would be unreasonable to delay… and this event should change nothing IMO. However, nothing surprises me anymore.

Or did the message just get published early?

— Gabor Gurbacs (@gaborgurbacs) January 9, 2024

Magazine: 10 best long reads about crypto in 2023