Fidelity Secures CBOE Registration for Bitcoin ETF, Files with SEC

Multi-trillion dollar asset manager Fidelity has taken another major step to secure approval for its spot Bitcoin ETF application.

The price of Bitcoin took a dive on Wednesday after reports emerged that the SEC could potentially deny pending spot Bitcoin ETF applications. The report, though largely unfounded, sparked market fears that have continued to suppress Bitcoin’s price to around $43,000 at the time of writing.

However, substantial evidence exists that the race for the potential launch of a spot Bitcoin ETF in the U.S. is still on. On Wednesday, Fidelity Investments, which manages $4.5 trillion in assets, filed a new document with the U.S. SEC.

The new filing shows that Fidelity has received approval from national securities exchange operator CBOE to list the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund, the firm’s Bitcoin ETF offering. The approval is another important step that must be taken by Fidelity ahead of a possible SEC green light.

As clarified by Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart, the registration with CBOE does not mean that the fund has been approved to trade by the SEC. Instead, Fidelity, like other ETF aspirants, must wait for an approved 19b-4 form approval, as well as a completed S1, another filing that the firm is yet to complete.

My understanding here is that this is just a securities registration. In order to list the ETF still needs a 19b-4 approval and they need an effective/approved/completed S-1 document. No 19b-4 yet. And S-1 is still preliminary (seen below). I'm still looking towards next week https://t.co/VsgbpJHMVp pic.twitter.com/Iu31AkUswP

— James Seyffart (@JSeyff) January 3, 2024

Overall, the latest filing and a reported meeting between the SEC and other fund managers on Wednesday confirmed that the race is still on. As per Fox Business, ETF applicants could be notified of an approval as soon as Friday, while the funds could begin trading as soon as next week. There is also the possibility that the SEC will extend its wait time to the official January 8-10 deadline.

Bitcoin Struggles to Regain Momentum 

Following Wednesday’s flash crash, BTC has struggled to regain momentum after its initial fightback from the $41k zone. At the time of writing, the leading cryptocurrency is barely trading above $43,000, even though it rose as high as $45,800 earlier this week.

Undoubtedly, news around the ETF will remain a keen talking point for participants going forward. A denial, while unlikely, will send prices crashing further, while approval could see BTC hit $50,000, according to multiple predictions. At the same time, the latter could also set the stage for BTC to hit six figures within the next twelve months.