Gensler's Reluctant Statement: No Approval or Endorsement for Bitcoin ETF

• SEC Chair Gary Gensler Responds to Bitcoin ETF Approvals
• No Endorsement for Bitcoin
• Further Clarifications about Future Actions
• Bitcoin's Unique Position
• Response from Other SEC Commissioners
• Crenshaw's Dissent: 'A Wayward Path'
• Peirce's Praise for the Decisions

SEC Chair Gary Gensler Responds to Bitcoin ETF Approvals

The Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler has admitted that the regulator's court defeat over rejecting Grayscale's application for a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) forced the commission's hand to approve roughly twelve proposals of a similar nature. Gensler labeled these approvals as the most sustainable path forward in a declaration distributed shortly after the organization issued the much-anticipated decisions.

No Endorsement for Bitcoin

Despite these approvals, Gensler was clear in stating that this should not be interpreted as an endorsement of bitcoin. He cautioned investors about the numerous risks associated with bitcoin and products linked to cryptocurrency. He characterized bitcoin as primarily a speculative, volatile asset that's also used for illicit activity including ransomware, money laundering, sanction evasion and terrorist financing.

Further Clarifications about Future Actions

Gensler also clarified that the approval of these ETFs does not imply the SEC's readiness to approve listing standards for crypto asset securities. He also stated that the approval does not indicate any position about the status of other crypto assets under federal securities laws or about the current state of non-compliance of certain crypto asset market participants with federal securities laws.

Bitcoin's Unique Position

Bitcoin$42,260 -0.64%, Gensler affirmed, is the only digital asset that he consistently recognizes as not a security, asserting that the vast majority of other tokens fit the legal definition of securities and thus fall under the SEC's jurisdiction.

Response from Other SEC Commissioners

Crenshaw's Dissent: 'A Wayward Path'

Another SEC commissioner, Caroline Crenshaw, expressed disagreement with the approvals. She argued that these decisions could potentially compromise investor protection and that they do not serve the statutory or foundational investor protection mandates.

Peirce's Praise for the Decisions

On the other hand, Commissioner Hester Peirce, a consistent supporter of the cryptocurrency industry, lauded the decisions as the end of an unnecessary, but consequential, saga. She referred to the SEC's loss against Grayscale in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia as the only significant change since the last time a similar application was denied.

Edited by Jonathan Stoker