Nasdaq and BlackRock have proposed a rule modification that would permit options trading on the BlackRock spot Ethereum ETF.
On Tuesday, a regulatory filing disclosed that BlackRock and Nasdaq were advocating for the inclusion of options trading in the BlackRock spot Ethereum ETF.
The SEC recently authorized Ethereum ETFs from significant firms, including Franklin Templeton and VanEck. This action is a result of this approval.
The Bank of New York Mellon would administer cash, while the proposed iShares Ethereum Trust would hold only Ethereum in Coinbase custody. It would not stake its Ether, thereby maintaining its status as a passive investment.
Options grant an investor the ability to purchase or dispose of an asset at a predetermined price within a designated timeframe. The objective of Nasdaq’s action is to improve the competitiveness and appeal of the BlackRock spot Ethereum ETF by offering investors a cost-effective method of obtaining exposure to the ETF. Nasdaq had previously listed options on other commodity ETFs that were structured as trusts, including BlackRock’s iShares COMEX Gold Trust and iShares Silver Trust.
The SEC is responsible for overseeing the modifications to the rule that are necessary to list options on the new trust, as indicated in the filing. James Seyffart, an analyst at Bloomberg ETF, stated that the SEC has 21 days to provide a comment. He also mentioned that a definitive decision is anticipated on April 9, 2025.
The registrants require approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in addition to the SEC.
Conversely, the SEC has not yet authorized options trading for spot Bitcoin ETFs, which have been trading since January and currently possess approximately $50 billion in Bitcoin market value. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) necessitate additional time to evaluate options trading.
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