Standard Chartered Bank’s Foreign Exchange Director, Geoffrey Kendrick, stated that the Ethereum spot ETF will ultimately be approved for listing on May 23, and the price of ETH will reach $4,000.
(Previous Summary:
SEC plans to “force reject” the Ethereum spot ETF? Insider: Gensler still considers ETH as a security)
(Background Supplement:
Will the Ethereum spot ETF approval result in a drop? Grayscale’s “3 million ETH” may replicate the GBTC sell-off)
Table of Contents:
Standard Chartered Bank: SEC has not determined ETH as a security
ETH to rise to $4,000 after the approval of the Ethereum ETF
Current status of the Ethereum spot ETF application
After the approval of the Bitcoin spot ETF by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which brought optimism to the market, Ethereum, as the second-largest cryptocurrency, is also expected to be approved for listing by the SEC this year.
Although the SEC has previously postponed the review of the Ethereum spot ETF applications from BlackRock and Fidelity, Geoffrey Kendrick, the Foreign Exchange Director at Standard Chartered Bank, expressed optimism in a recent report that the Ethereum spot ETF will be approved for listing on May 23.
Standard Chartered Bank: SEC has not determined ETH as a security
Regarding the reasons, Kendrick stated that this is mainly because the SEC has not classified Ethereum as a security in the lawsuits against multiple cryptocurrency companies. Additionally, the listing of Ethereum futures contracts as regulated financial products on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) has provided support for this.
Kendrick also mentioned that Grayscale, the cryptocurrency asset management company that successfully converted its Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into a Bitcoin spot ETF, may file another lawsuit against the SEC if the Ethereum Trust (ETHE) is rejected.
Further reading:
SEC Chairman explains the reason for approving “Bitcoin ETF”: The Grayscale case was a turning point, but it does not mean that we approve BTC
ETH to rise to $4,000 after the approval of the Ethereum ETF
Kendrick previously made predictions that the approval of the Bitcoin spot ETF will attract $50-100 billion of funds into BTC, and by the end of this year, the price of Bitcoin will surpass $100,000, reaching $200,000 by the end of 2025.
Similarly, Kendrick holds an optimistic view on the trend of Ethereum, believing that if the Ethereum spot ETF is approved, the price of ETH will follow the historical trajectory of Bitcoin and reach $4,000 after the ETF approval.
Kendrick also added that Ethereum will not experience a sell-off similar to Bitcoin after the ETF approval.
Lastly, Kendrick mentioned another key factor driving the rise of ETH this year, which is the upgrade to Ethereum, known as EIP-1559.
Current status of the Ethereum spot ETF application
There are currently 7 Ethereum spot ETF applications awaiting approval from the SEC, including BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, VanEck, 21Shares/ARK, Invesco/Galaxy, and Hashdex.
Meanwhile, the final approval decisions for VanEck, ARK 21Shares, and Hashdex Ethereum spot ETFs by the SEC are set for May 2024, while other applications will be decided within the next 6 to 8 months.
It is worth mentioning that James Seyffart, an ETF analyst at Bloomberg, expressed a similar view to Kendrick’s at the beginning of the year, stating that when the SEC approved 9 Ethereum-related futures ETFs last year, it “implicitly” acknowledged Ethereum as a commodity, indicating the possibility of the first Ethereum spot ETF being listed this year.
7 Ethereum spot ETFs awaiting approval from the SEC. Source: Bloomberg
Related Reports
The Ark Investment by the “Stock Market Goddess” applies for “Ethereum Spot ETF,” causing ETH to briefly surge to $1,670
Bernstein: Bitcoin spot ETF expected to be approved by Q1 next year, followed closely by “Ethereum Spot ETF”
SEC questions Ethereum’s “PoS centralization”! Further delay in the transformation of Grayscale ETHE to a spot ETF