According to the co-founder of Wilshire Phoenix, the United States SEC may not approve a Bitcoin ETF this year, although he sees 2022 and 2023 as a possible time.
William Cai, the co-founder of investment firm Wilshire Phoenix, is the latest to question if a Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) would be approved in the United States in 2021.
Cai told Business Insider that a Bitcoin ETF in 2021 is doubtful and that the earliest feasible periods for the US Securities and Exchange Commission to approve a BTC ETF are 2022 and 2023.
Several Bitcoin ETF aspirants have filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including investment management firm Global X, which filed in July.
The SEC has chosen to postpone its decision on the pending ETF application, and Cai believes the commission will reject these applications, noting, “We think they’re all going to be stuck.”
Cai is familiar with the SEC’s approach to Bitcoin ETF applications. The commission, as previously reported by Cointelegraph, denied Wilshire Phoenix’s Bitcoin ETF application in February 2020, much to the company’s dismay.
Despite the new head of the SEC, Gary Gensler, the commission’s stance on Bitcoin ETFs remains unchanged, according to Cai. “I haven’t seen anything that implies they’ve changed their minds,” Cai continued.
The Wilshire Phoenix co-founder indicated in the interview that price manipulation is still a key worry for the SEC.
King indicated at the time that Bitcoin ETFs were not high on the SEC’s priority list. The commission was focused on regulating meme stock, environmental, social, and governance compliance, and the Robinhood initial public offering, according to Cai.
