watch
now
VanEck
CEO
Jan
van
Eck
sees
a
major
sentiment
shift
underway
in
the
cryptocurrency
market
linked
to
the
U.S.
Securities
and
Exchange
Commission’s
approval
of
a
rule
change
allowing
for
Ethereum
exchange-traded
funds.
“This
is
really
one
of
the
most
amazing
things
that
I’ve
seen
in
my
career
with
respect
to
securities
regulation,”
van
Eck
told
CNBC’s
“ETF
Edge”
this
week.
VanEck
was
the
first
to
apply
to
the
SEC
for
permission
to
list
its
proposed
Ethereum
ETF.
With
that
first
hurdle
cleared,
VanEck
can
begin
the
process
of
bringing
the
product
to
market,
though
the
exact
timeline
is
unclear.
“There
was
a
real
risk
that
the
SEC
was
going
to
lose
any
kind
of
jurisdiction
over
digital
assets.
So
the
first
reaction
was
to
get
the
ETF,
Ethereum
ETF
approval
green
lighted,”
he
said.
“But
I
think
there’s
a
bigger
narrative
going
on
as
well.”
To
van
Eck,
the
buzz
around
Ethereum
this
May
means
clearer
regulation
on
the
horizon
and
an
increased
investor
interest
in
crypto.
In
a
statement
on
its
website,
his
company
said
that
“the
evidence
clearly
shows
that
ETH
is
a
decentralized
commodity,
not
a
security.”
Van
Eck
said
the
Financial
Innovation
and
Technology
for
the
21st
Century
Act,
or
FIT21,
passing
in
the
House
on
May
8
was
another
major
step
toward
regulatory
clarity
for
cryptocurrencies,
even
though
he
is
doubtful
it
will
make
it
to
the
Senate
before
the
election.
Ether
spiked
on
the
SEC’s
approval
of
applications
to
list
Ethereum
ETFs
on
May
23,
but
is
virtually
flat
since
then.
