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It’s “all systems go” as the crypto community waits for SEC approval of a spot bitcoin ETF, according to senior ETF analyst, Eric Balchunas.

“Happy ETF Approval Day to all those who celebrate,” ETF analyst says

“Happy ETF Approval Day (for real this time) to all those who celebrate,” Balchunas, a senior ETF analyst for Bloomberg, posted to X on Wednesday morning. “As far as we know it’s ALL SYSTEMS GO. Most likely is we see formal approvals ballpark 4-6pm today with the Derby starting on Thursday.”

The “derby” seemingly refers to the stiff competition between spot bitcoin ETF hopefuls, which Balchunas in the past has referred to as the “Cointucky Derby.”

New one from me today on how just making it to the starting gate is half the battle for ETF issuers in the Cointucky Derby, it’s the race before the race, currently a mad scramble behind scenes to get signed AP agreements, a critical but not easy last step. pic.twitter.com/IF58KQthcV

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) December 27, 2023

Gensler in hot water over hacking scandal

Balchunas’ post comes shortly after SEC Chair, Gary Gensler, had to do damage control on Tuesday following a fraudulent post indicating the SEC had approved spot bitcoin ETFs.

“The @SECGov twitter account was compromised, and an unauthorized tweet was posted,”  SEC Chair Gary Gensler posted to X Tuesday Afternoon. “The SEC has not approved the listing and trading of spot bitcoin exchange-traded products.”

Shortly after the SEC’s post, Bitcoin’s price soared to $48,000 before dwindling back down to $44,000. As of early Wednesday afternoon, the cryptocurrency was trading at greater than $45,000.

Gensler faced backlash for the SEC hacking, with Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and JD Vance (R-OH) imbuing the SEC Chair to provide insight and accountability into what happened via a strongly written letter.

“The United States is home to the world’s deepest and most liquid capital markets and stability and soundness are imperative if investors are to maintain their trust in our markets,” the senators wrote in part. “It is unacceptable that the agency entrusted with regulating the epicenter of the world’s capital markets would make such a colossal error.”

“Done and done”

Following his original post, Balchunas offered up advice to Gensler on how to handle the scandal on X. 

“If I was the SEC PR person I’d advise Gary to do a press conference today…talk about the hack, ack they goofed, steps they’ve taken yada yada and then also announce ETF approvals (and the do his usual warnings on crypto) all in one shot,” Balchunas added. “Done and done.”

Shortly after that post, Balchunas posted that a number of spot bitcoin ETF applicants had their “requests for acceleration” approved by CBOE, marking what may the finishing touches on final details before the “Cointucky Derby” begins. 

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