The holiday season has quieted the markets, with both the EU and US exchanges closed for Christmas. Despite the lull, there have been notable developments in the cryptocurrency space. The industry is seemingly in a state of anticipation, preparing for the expected busyness of early January.
FTX remains in the spotlight as customers are still unable to retrieve their funds, raising concerns about precedent cases similar to MTGOX. FTX’s bankruptcy officers have proposed a separate deal for the defunct exchange’s stock trading platform, Embed, as revealed in a court filing on December 22nd.
There is no clear timeline for refund payments to FTX customers, and the bankruptcy committee has been unsuccessful in announcing a date. Discussions about the potential sale of FTX by early December have not materialized, and experts are skeptical due to legal hurdles and the tarnished reputation of the exchange.
The SEC has set a deadline of December 29th for exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to finalize their filings. SEC officials met with representatives from firms including BlackRock and Grayscale Investments on December 21st, discussing the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs in early 2024.
The SEC expects the final versions of these filings by the end of the month, potentially leading to approvals in early January. These updates pertain to in-kind/redemption processes, which have been extensively discussed previously.
Former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes has expressed concerns that spot Bitcoin ETFs could immobilize Bitcoin, contradicting its value derived from movement. However, Hayes also suggests that if ETFs lead to the majority of Bitcoin being held in institutional wallets, the price could soar to six figures, making volatility irrelevant for 99% of investors. He has been criticized for his extreme view that a spot Bitcoin ETF could control most or all circulating Bitcoin, a stance that has been challenged since BlackRock filed for a Spot BTC ETF in June.
