BlackRock, VanEck hand in amended S-1 forms for spot bitcoin ETFs to address final comments

BlackRock and VanEck have filed amended S-1 forms for their respective spot bitcoin ETF applications to address final comments from the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The SEC sent comments to some of the prospective issuers yesterday after they filed their latest forms, according to CoinDesk citing a source. These comments were focused on minor details and were not expected to delay the applications.

The forms filed today show minor changes, including language on what happens if an authorized participant or bitcoin trading counterparty suffers insolvency and highlights that there could be potential conflicts of interest. They also included some warnings for potential investors of cases where there could be impaired liquidity.

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas noted on X that the 24 turnaround time between the filing, comments and re-filings show that all parties involved are "aiming to get this show on [the] road pronto."

The amended S-1 forms filed on Monday also provided final details regarding respective fee structures. Multiple providers are offering zero fees for a limited amount of time, with Bitwise offering the lowest fixed fee of 0.24%. Ark/21Shares is right behind it at 0.25%, and BlackRock is not far off at 0.3%.

Going ahead, these issuers are waiting on the SEC to approve their 19b-4 forms and for their S-1 filings to go into effect. Once both of these have taken place, trading will be able to start the following day.