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Nate Geraci, president of the ETF Store, has noted that the general consensus is that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is not going to approve spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) this May.
This is due to the lack of engagement with issuers over the past few weeks.
Earlier this month, Barron's reported that discussions about spot ETFs have been "very one-sided." This is very different from the constant "back-and-forth" that was observed on the cusp of the approval of multiple Bitcoin ETFs.
The SEC was not willing to offer any feedback about Ethereum ETFs, meaning that their approval is highly unlikely as of now.
Eric Balchunas, Bloomberg's senior ETF analyst, succinctly summarized that "silence is violence" when it comes to the SEC's interactions with potential issuers.
Another lawsuit?
With that being said, the SEC could potentially face another lawsuit if it rejects a slew of Ethereum ETF applications, according to Balchunas.
Back in August, Grayscale managed to score a legal victory against the SEC, with the U.S. District of Columbia Court of Appeals ruling that the regulator was wrong to shoot down its Bitcoin ETF application.
Geraci now believes that Grayscale could bring another lawsuit against the SEC over its reluctance to approve Ethereum ETFs:
"Have to assume Grayscale, but some other enterprising ETF issuer w/ deep enough pockets could view this as a basic marketing expense…Basically brand themself as “pro-crypto” & willing to go to bat for innovation," he said.
Does anyone care about Ethereum ETFs?
Some have questioned the significance of spot Ethereum ETFs given that futures-based ETFs that track the value of the largest altcoin have attracted little attention.
However, given the stunning success of Bitcoin ETFs, Geraci believes that Ethereum ETFs are still a big deal.
Ethereum's $379 billion market cap makes it a "big enough deal" for analysts and issuers to pay attention.