The Anointing of Bitcoin As SEC Approves Bitcoin ETFs

Bitcoin needs the government to thrive, and over the last few weeks, the government has been responding positively.  One of the finest moments happened a few hours ago when the US regulator approved the Bitcoin ETF: “The U.S. securities regulator on Wednesday approved the first U.S.-listed exchange traded funds (ETFs) to track bitcoin, in a watershed for the world’s largest cryptocurrency and the broader crypto industry.

“The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said it approved 11 applications, including from BlackRock, Ark Investments/21Shares , Fidelity, Invesco and VanEck, despite warnings from some officials and investor advocates that the products carried risks.”

As Bitcoin gets anointed by the SEC, institutional investors and big family offices will begin to play on it. As that happens, over time, a new level of concentration will happen, just as we have in stocks and bonds. But it will be great for some hodlers as moments will come. Left and right, BTC is now an asset class, annointed and baptized by the highest financial regulator in the world, and that means, BTC is an asset for business.

Similarly, we must commend the Nigerian government for also lifting the veil on crypto transactions in Nigerian banking, enabling our young people to participate productively in the fledgling sector. (I am not a crypto person; never bought a crypto except one $10 BTC purchase I did just for academic purposes to see how it works, as I was developing a course for Tekedia Mini-MBA. But I do hold BTC as I accept BTC and ETH payments).

That said, financial engineering of money will not save the world. Yes, buy and hold expecting the asset to rise by no meaningful production (reflected on balance sheets and income statements) posits a redesign on the order of economic architectures. But we will see.

But today, BTC is going mainstream and over time, it will be normalized by BlackRock, Fidelity, Goldman Sachs and State Street, with all the individual crusaders mere participants. That is not a bad outcome since that has been the stable state since 1890 when America took over the world’s economy.

Today, the United States has secured the future of Bitcoin and it would be American as others siddon-look, unborn tomorrow but lost yesterday!

Bitcoin needs the government to thrive, and over the last few weeks, the government has been responding positively. One of the finest moments happened a few hours ago when the US regulator approved the Bitcoin ETF: “The U.S. securities regulator on Wednesday approved the first… pic.twitter.com/nOB6NgrOei

— Ndubuisi Ekekwe (@ndekekwe) January 11, 2024

The Securities and Exchange Commission has officially approved exchange-traded funds that hold bitcoin, a landmark move that pushes crypto more into the mainstream. The agency gave all 11 applications filed by asset managers, including BlackRock, Grayscale and Fidelity, the green light. The decision comes after the SEC said late Tuesday that an announcement indicating the ETFs were approved was false. At the time, an agency spokesperson said hackers using the SEC’s official X account made the inaccurate claim. Bitcoin has more than doubled in value since last January, though the hack revived some skepticism about transparency in crypto markets.

• The new ETF products allow direct exposure to bitcoin without holding the digital currency. Bitcoins — not bitcoin futures contracts — are the underlying asset of a spot ETF, per CBS News Money Watch. Both BlackRock and Ark cut fees as they jockeyed for investors ahead of the decision. (LinkedIn News)

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