Ether price hits 2-month high against Bitcoin ahead of ETF decision

AFRICAN STOCKS AND FINANCEMay 23, 2024 at 4:27 PM UTC

TLDR

Ethereum (ETH) hits two-month high at $3,824 due to surging speculation on SEC approval for spot Ether ETFs.
Bloomberg raises SEC approval likelihood to 75%; Standard Chartered analyst projects potential $45 billion inflow in ETFs' first year.
Market reacts with bullish sentiment as Ethereum's price rises 22% in hours, driving overall digital asset market cap to $2.6 trillion with 130% trading volume hike.

Ethereum (ETH), the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, surged to a two-month high of $3,824 on Wednesday amid speculation that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may soon approve spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Bloomberg's ETF analysts raised the likelihood of SEC approval to 75% from 25%, while a Standard Chartered analyst projected these ETFs could attract $45 billion in their first year.

This news ignited bullish sentiment in the cryptocurrency market, driving Ethereum's price up by over 22% within hours. The overall digital asset market gained 7.5%, reaching a market cap of $2.6 trillion, with trading volumes soaring by 130%.

Key Takeaways

The SEC has reportedly requested exchanges aiming to list and trade potential spot Ether ETFs to update their 19b-4 filings on an accelerated basis, indicating the regulator's effort to fast-track the process. This has fueled speculation within the crypto community on X (formerly Twitter) that the SEC may favor approving a spot ETH ETF, possibly suggesting a more constructive regulatory stance towards crypto. The SEC is set to decide on the VanEck spot Ether ETF on May 23. For Ether ETFs to begin trading on stock exchanges, the SEC must approve both the 19b-4 filings and the S-1 registration statements.

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