Invesco joins BlackRock, WisdomTree in filing for spot Bitcoin ETF

U.S.-based investment manager Invesco re-filed its spot Bitcoin ETF application with the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) on June 20.

In conjunction with Galaxy Digital, the firm had previously filed for a spot Bitcoin ETF in September 2021. It also applied for a futures ETF product, named “The Invesco Bitcoin Strategy ETF,” in August 2021 – later dropping the application in October 2021, giving no specific reason for the turnaround.

Invesco’s re-filing comes in quick succession to WisdomTree and BlackRock’s spot ETF applications. The BlackRock filing was made on June 15, when market sentiment was low due to heightened regulatory hostility.

Alex Adelma, the chief executive of Bitcoin rewards app Lolli, said that as the world’s largest investment manager, BlackRock had reinvigorated institutional interest in Bitcoin – likely triggering a wave of institutional Bitcoin-related financial products to come.

In its current filing, Invesco pointed out that prior ETF approvals were made based on the listing exchange having a “surveillance sharing agreement” and not on the regulation covering the spot market – citing examples such as the existence of spot gold products when the spot gold market is “largely unregulated.”

It added that its product offers investor protection over and above buying Bitcoin directly, including protection against insolvency and cyber attacks. Also, hinting at investor harm caused by numerous CeFi bankruptcies last year, it stated that if a spot Bitcoin ETF were approved, U.S. investors would not use “loosely regulated offshore vehicles.”

The SEC has repeatedly rejected spot Bitcoin ETF applications, raising concerns about cryptocurrency volatility and market manipulation.

Given BlackRock’s standing and track record in ETF approvals, some hope this wave of applications will yield an alternative response from the regulator.