MIAX Withdraws Proposal for Bitcoin ETF Options

MIAX, the Miami International Securities Exchange, just withdrew its application for options trading on spot Bitcoin ETFs. This came after the first proposal in January this year, after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved spot Bitcoin ETFs. This withdrawal was made known via an SEC filing on August 1st.

MIAX Pulls Proposal Amid Regulatory Uncertainty

MIAX’s decision to pull out comes at the heels of Better Markets’ concerns and comments regarding the dangers of the mentioned products. Better Markets, a non-profit organization that does not have affiliation with any political party, outlined some of the possible dangers to investors and the financial sector. However, this doesn’t mean that other exchanges are still not seeking similar licenses, as there is increasing interest in cryptocurrency derivatives.

James Seyffart, a Bloomberg Intelligence analyst, hopes for the approval of these options sooner. He said approval might be possible by the end of the month following the next one. As for the further actions after the final SEC decision anticipated for September 21, Seyffart said that there would be some actions with the Options Clearing Corporation (OCC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

We think the #Bitcoin ETF options happen in 4th quarter this year. Final deadline for SEC decision is ~Sept. 21 but there’s more steps needed after that from OCC & CFTC.

Here are some BTC & ETH related ETFs including leveraged that already have options. cc @EricBalchunas https://t.co/xErD5oPiWb pic.twitter.com/USauv6QaFs

— James Seyffart (@JSeyff) August 8, 2024

The industry has welcomed the approval of options on spot Bitcoin ETFs as the natural evolution of events such as those seen with spot gold ETFs. Michael Sonnenshein, the former Grayscale CEO, also agrees with this view, stating that it is within the accepted conventional regulatory framework. While MIAX retreats, other market centres, such as NYSE Arca, advance with their proposals.

The public has had a split response to MIAX’s decision, with some people considering it as a precautionary measure due to the somewhat volatile regulatory environment. Conversely, the general sentiment among the top representatives of the sphere remains a further addition of cryptocurrencies to the existing financial instruments.

Also Read: Wells Fargo May Soon Offer Bitcoin ETFs to Select Clients