Analysts in the ETF industry have expressed optimism regarding the approval of Ethereum’s futures ETFs by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). They now project a 75% likelihood of receiving the green light, aligning with the odds given to Bitcoin futures ETFs in September 2021 when the SEC approved several such ETFs.
The greenlighting of Ethereum futures ETFs would represent a noteworthy achievement for the cryptocurrency sector, given Ethereum’s value as an asset and its pivotal role in enabling decentralized applications, smart contracts, and the flourishing realm of decentralized finance (DeFi).
Crypto enthusiasts eagerly await the approval of spot ETFs, which would enable investors to directly purchase and hold cryptocurrencies. Experts Seyffart and Balchunas have also raised the likelihood of a spot Bitcoin ETF being approved, noting SEC Chairman Gary Gensler’s positive stance toward cryptocurrencies and the strategic conversion of existing crypto investment funds into ETFs by firms like Grayscale and BlackRock.
Ethereum’s ongoing upgrade to Ethereum 2.0, aimed at enhancing scalability, security, and energy efficiency through sharding and layer 2 rollups, further adds to the cryptocurrency’s prospects. The upgrade is set to complete in 2024.
While some analysts speculate that Ethereum has the potential to surpass Bitcoin’s market value due to its wider range of use cases and innovative capabilities, the cryptocurrency faces challenges and risks, including regulatory uncertainty, network congestion, high fees, security breaches, and competition from other blockchain platforms.
As of now, Ethereum is trading at $1,830.06 with a market cap of $219.91B and a daily trading volume of $4.75B, experiencing a 0.28% decline in the last 24 hours. The circulating supply of Ethereum stands at approximately 120.17M ETH, as per CoinMarketCap data.