Bitwise CIO: SEC Proposal for Universal Listing Standards Could Trigger Explosive Growth in Crypto ETPs

On September 16th, as reported by The Block, Matt Hougan, the Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of the cryptocurrency asset management company Bitwise, stated that although September has traditionally been a weak month for cryptocurrency performance, the proposed universal listing standard by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) could completely open up the market. He pointed out that factors such as interest rate cuts, inflows into ETPs, increased attention on the U.S. dollar, as well as the momentum of tokenization and stablecoins, all laid the foundation for a year-end rebound. Hougan explained that currently, each new spot cryptocurrency ETP requires a separate application to the SEC, with an approval period of up to 240 days and no guarantee of approval. The first spot Bitcoin ETP application took place in 2013, but the SEC did not approve the first batch of products until 2024. The introduction of a universal listing standard will enable eligible ETPs to go live without individual applications, improving approval efficiency and shortening the approval process. This move indicates that cryptocurrency ETPs could obtain predictable approvals in as little as 75 days, and with the launch of more futures markets, a large number of new products will be released.