The first Bitcoin-specific exchange traded fund has been stuck behind red tape for two years, but the Securities and Exchange Commission is ready to make a judgement by March.
According to a recent SEC filing, regulators will discuss proposed rules change and make a final decision on the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust ETF (BATS: COIN) by March 11.
Regulators first asked for public comment on the fund about eight months ago, extending the timetable for the bitcoin ETF that Tyler and Comeraon Winklevoss first proposed years ago.
The SEC has requested for additional comments from the public over the stability of bitcoins, the manner in which the trust will value holdings and any potential conflicts of interest between the custodian and bitcoin exchange Gemini, which is also owned by the Winklevoss twins.
Blockchain products lead at ARK Investment Management, Chris Burniske, argued that SEC Chair Mary Jo White’s plans to leave with the departure of President Barack Obama could have further postponed any further decision on the product, reports Michael del Castillo for CoinDesk.
“With high turnover like this, it’s easy for things to be delayed. If there’s not time to attend to this, then it will be pushed back,” del Castillo said.
Bitcoin is a decentralized digital currency, or cryptocurrency, based on a peer-to-peer network and can be exchanged through computers internationally without a financial intermediary. The system was first introduced by an unidentified programmer or group under the name of Satoshi Nakamoto in 2009.
The Winklevoss brothers have introduced the bitcoin index, or so-called Winkdex, which will also be used to price the value of assets held by the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust. The proposed COIN ETF is designed to track a basket of shares tied to the digital currency, which has experienced volatile pricing.
Bitcoin currently trades at around $981.8, recently trading as high as $1,153. Bitcoin started to gain widespread attention in late 2013 after surging above $1,100.
For more information on the cryptocurrency, visit our Bitcoin category.