ARK Invest Withdraws from Spot Ethereum ETF Application with 21Shares

TLDR

• ARK Invest has ended its partnership with 21Shares for the proposed spot Ethereum ETF.
• The fund has been rebranded from Ark 21Shares Ethereum ETF to 21Shares Core Ethereum ETF.
• ARK Invest and 21Shares will continue their collaboration on other projects, such as the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF.
• The SEC recently approved 19b-4 forms for eight Ethereum ETFs, but issuers still need their S-1 statements to become effective before trading can begin.
• Several other issuers, including Franklin Templeton, Fidelity Investments, VanEck, and Invesco Ltd., have filed revised S-1 statements for their proposed Ether ETFs.

ARK Invest, led by Cathie Wood, has withdrawn its involvement in the race to launch an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that would directly invest in Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency.

The amended prospectus document, known as Form S-1, filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Friday, revealed that ARK’s name was removed from the application for the spot-Ether ETF that it had filed in partnership with 21Shares.

As a result, the fund’s name has been changed from Ark 21Shares Ethereum ETF to 21Shares Core Ethereum ETF.

Despite the withdrawal from the Ethereum ETF, ARK Invest remains committed to its Bitcoin ETF, the $3.2 billion ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ticker ARKB), which currently holds the fourth position in terms of assets among Bitcoin ETFs.

ARK statement on not doing Eth spot pic.twitter.com/Z48SMyXvat

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) May 31, 2024

The move comes after ARK joined forces with 21Shares as one of the successful issuers that launched spot-Bitcoin ETFs earlier this year.

The unexpected approval by the SEC of the 19b-4 filings made by exchanges operated by Cboe Global Markets Inc., Nasdaq, and the New York Stock Exchange to list spot-Ether ETFs created anticipation in the market.

However, issuers still await the regulator’s approval of their S-1 statements before trading can commence.

In response to the recent developments, 21Shares expressed enthusiasm about the SEC’s approval and reaffirmed their commitment to increasing access to cryptocurrencies as an asset class for US investors

. They also highlighted their continued partnership with ARK on the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF, which was launched in January, as well as their existing lineup of futures products.

Several other issuers, including Franklin Templeton, Fidelity Investments, VanEck, and Invesco Ltd., have filed revised S-1 statements, signaling their intentions to launch Ether ETFs.

However, the SEC’s decision on these documents is yet to be determined.

Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart believes the approval of spot Ethereum ETFs was likely influenced by political decisions rather than purely financial considerations.

In contrast, crypto investor and trader Brian Kelly has suggested that Solana could potentially become the next cryptocurrency to have a spot ETF in the United States, following Bitcoin and Ethereum.