2025-03-02
The U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) has postponed its decision on Cboe Exchange's proposal to list
options tied to Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
According to a regulatory filing on
February 28, 2025, the SEC has extended its deadline until May 2025 to either
approve or disapprove the listing of these options.
Cboe initially submitted its request in
August 2024 to list options on the Fidelity Ethereum Fund (FETH), one of the
more popular Ether ETFs with approximately $1.3 billion in net assets.
The SEC had previously extended its
review period in October 2024.
Similarly, on February 7, 2025, the SEC
delayed its decision on Nasdaq ISE's proposal to list options tied to
BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA), the largest Ether ETF with over $3.7
billion in net assets, until April 2025.
The introduction of options markets for
Ether ETFs is considered an important step toward broader institutional
adoption of cryptocurrency assets. Since their debut in July 2024, spot Ether
ETFs have attracted approximately $11 billion in net assets.
Options are financial instruments that
grant the right to buy ("call") or sell ("put") an
underlying asset at a predetermined price, offering investors strategies for
hedging or speculation.
The expansion of cryptocurrency ETF
options is expected to accelerate institutional participation and potentially
unlock substantial investment opportunities.
For example, options on spot Bitcoin
ETFs began trading in November 2024, with BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF
(IBIT) experiencing nearly $2 billion in total exposure on its first day.
For cryptocurrency derivatives,
Coinbase launched Solana (SOL) futures on February 19, 2025.
Additionally, the Chicago Mercantile
Exchange (CME) Group announced plans on February 28, 2025, to launch Solana
futures contracts on March 17, pending regulatory approval.
These developments reflect a growing
interest in the cryptocurrency market.
