Bitcoin surges amid speculation about BlackRock ETF approval

Bitcoin has surged nearly 15 percent since Monday amid speculation that BlackRock’s proposed exchange-traded fund (ETF) for bitcoin could be nearing regulatory approval.

The often-volatile cryptocurrency jumped to just shy of $35,000 on Monday night and has hovered around $34,000 for the last two days, reaching its highest price in nearly a year and a half.

The bitcoin rally comes after traders noticed that BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust had appeared on an eligibility list controlled by the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC).

However, the securities clearinghouse told Reuters that the proposed bitcoin ETF had been added to the list in August as “standard practice” and was “not indicative of an outcome for any outstanding regulatory or other approval processes.”

If the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) were to approve BlackRock’s bitcoin ETF, it would be the first time that crypto is directly tradable on the traditional stock market. 

While the SEC has previously approved ETFs based on crypto futures, it has yet to approve any crypto-based spot ETFs, which would invest directly in crypto assets.

Prospects for the approval of such an ETF rose in late September, after a federal appeals court ruled that the SEC was wrong to deny an application by Grayscale Investments to create a spot bitcoin ETF.

The SEC reportedly does not plan to appeal the decision, which returned Grayscale’s application to regulators for reconsideration, according to Reuters.