Analysis: SEC may approve BTC spot ETF before FTX sells GBTC, thereby avoiding the expansion of its negative premium rate

According to a court filing, FTX holds approximately $417 million in Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). Van Buren Capital partner Scott Jonhsson said that the FTX bankruptcy reorganization plan is unlikely to be confirmed before the second quarter of 2024, and the SEC is expected to make a decision on the spot Bitcoin ETF before then. If GBTC had been converted to an ETF by then, the FTX sell-off would not have exacerbated GBTC’s negative premium, as the ETF creation and redemption process should only track the price of the underlying asset, BTC. Sean Farrell, head of cryptocurrency strategy at Fundstrat, said that if the SEC approves a spot ETF, it will help ensure that creditors are compensated. GBTC’s negative premium rate will narrow even more significantly, and given this positive factor, crypto asset prices are likely to surge overall. Coinglass data shows that the current negative premium rate of GBTC is 13.12%. (CoinDesk)