Bloomberg Intelligence believes that the spot bitcoin ETF could be approved this week in the U.S.

According to Bloomberg Intelligence, the anticipated launch of the bitcoin spot ETF in the U.S. could occur just before Labor Day (September 4).

The entity stated that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is expected to respond to the applications from BlackRock, Bitwise, WisdomTree, VanEck, and Invesco in the coming days. The agency has the option to approve, deny, or delay the applications.

More clarity before the end of the week

Bloomberg Intelligence reported that Bitwise’s application will be the first that the SEC considers, with an announcement expected on Friday (September 1). A decision on the other four applications, submitted by BlackRock, Invesco, WisdomTree, and VanEck, is expected to be made on Saturday (September 2).

The SEC’s stance has so far been quite discouraging for companies willing to introduce such a financial product in the U.S. It rejected Grayscale’s ambitions to convert its Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into an ETF last year and delayed a decision on the joint efforts of ARK Investment Management and 21Shares.

One person who is pessimistic that the regulatory body will delay the long-awaited product this week is Roxanna Islam, Assistant Director of Research and Head of Sector and Industry Research at VettaFi.

– We can expect new delays from the SEC, especially after they already postponed their decision on ARK’s spot bitcoin ETF earlier this month – said Islam.

Although the commission’s green light for such a product seemed like a mirage in recent years, the odds appeared to change when BlackRock jumped into the race.

The involvement of the financial giant, which the SEC has only rejected one of its 576 ETFs in the past, has brought optimism to the crypto space, prompting many to believe that the spot bitcoin ETF will finally see the light of day in the world’s largest economy.

Why BlackRock’s application could be successful?

There are many other reasons why BlackRock’s submission could receive SEC approval. A popular user on X (Twitter) named ‘Seth’ posted some key points that could play a role.

First, he reminded that the U.S. government and the Federal Reserve have great confidence in BlackRock, asking the asset manager to devise a rescue plan during the financial crisis of 2008.

Another factor is the change in opinion of the company’s CEO, Larry Fink, who called bitcoin a ‘money laundering index’ in 2017 but has recently aligned his stance with those who support the asset.

Seth pointed out that BlackRock already has experience in this area, having previously launched a bitcoin private ETF for institutional investors.

The fact that a bitcoin ETF exists in other regions such as Canada and the influx of applications coming from other asset managers, including Vanguard and Fidelity, are also factors worth noting, concluded Seth.