Ethereum spot ETFs – Why the SEC’s expected rejection isn’t all bad news

• Bitcoin’s post-halving hours saw a 2.31% dip, but ETF inflows surged and boosted investor confidence
• Potential expansion of crypto-ETFs beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum could drive mainstream adoption

Looks like Bitcoin’s [BTC] halving brought its own share of surprises! After all the hype surrounding Bitcoin’s halving, BTC hit a bump on the road, falling by 2.31% in just 24 hours. This, despite the Bitcoin ETF market noting such a significant change. After five days of outflows, there was a sudden influx of positive net inflows right before the day of the halving.

In fact, according to Farside Investors’ data, five out of 10 ETFs recorded positive inflows totaling $59.7 million. 

Source: Farside Investors

This underlined the growing confidence in Bitcoin’s pre-halving and post-halving performance among investors in the ETF space. 

Expansion of ETFs leading to crypto-mainstream adoption 

Discussing the potential expansion of the crypto-ETF space beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum [ETH], Sergey Nazarov, Co-founder of Chainlink, in a recent interview claimed, 

“I think what’s next is more ETFs about coins other than Bitcoin and Ethereum. So, I think the ETF dynamic is going to continue during this year and just grow and grow and grow.”

His comments highlighted the potential for ETFs to drive broader adoption of digital assets and advance the mainstream integration of Web3 technologies.

Here, it’s worth noting that in a separate interview, Anthony Scaramucci, Founder of SkyBridge Capital, also chipped in on the subject.  

“Bitcoin is on an adoption curve.”

He added,

“You won’t see this inflation hedge, or a store of value as other pundits are saying until you get over a billion users. So, right now it’s gonna be way more volatile than the people like.”

All eyes on Spot Ethereum ETFs 

On the back of Hong Kong’s recent approval of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, positive steps are being taken towards mainstream adoption. However, while U.S-based ETFs have accumulated nearly $60 billion in assets since their launch, Hong Kong’s new ETFs’ success projections vary. 

Echoing similar sentiments, senior Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas recently commented, 

“Other countries adding BTC ETFs is no doubt additive, but it’s nickel-dime compared to the mighty U.S market.”

All this leads us to a question – Will the SEC reject the spot Ethereum ETF applications? 

In response to the aforementioned question, Hashkey Capital’s Head of Research Jupiter Zheng, responded, 

“If the ETF is denied, it will not be that bearish, as the market is not pricing in it yet. And, we still have Bitcoin ETFs as the entrance for traditional funds.” 

What dictates entry into the crypto-market though? Well, according to Nazarov, adoption does.

According to the exec, to address concerns about mainstream adoption, the crypto-industry must focus on enhancing usability, scalability, connectivity, and privacy. Improvements in these areas would not only attract broader adoption, but also drive the industry forward by pushing its boundaries, he concluded.