BlackRock submits S-1 SEC filing for spot ether ETF

BlackRock submitted the S-1 a week after it filed a 19b-4

November 16, 2023 10:43 am

Tada Images/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

BlackRock is pushing forward with plans for a possible spot ether ETF.

This comes after the asset manager filed a 19b-4 last week, showing that the spot ether ETF would be listed on Nasdaq. It filed the S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday.

A 19b-4 is an SEC form noting rule changes.

Last Thursday, Nasdaq filed for the iShares Ethereum Trust after BlackRock filed in Delaware for the entity.

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According to the S-1, essentially a registration statement to the SEC, the proposed ETF “seeks to reflect generally the performance of the price of ether.”

BlackRock’s move into the spot ether ETF race comes months after it jumped into the spot bitcoin ETF race.

In October, eagle-eyed ETF watchers noted that the BlackRock ETF was listed on the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation website, which was assumed to be an indicator that BlackRock was preparing for a green light from the SEC.

However, the DTCC threw cold water on the optimism after it said that the listing was not “indicative” of approval, it was merely “standard practice,” the DTCC told Blockworks at the time.

And the S-1 comes after a false registration for a BlackRock XRP trust led to brief turbulence in the market for that digital asset. The registration appeared on the Delaware Division of Corporations website, mimicking legitimate registrations — such as the spot ether ETF — that BlackRock filed in the past.

Since the false listing, the Delaware Department of State referred the matter to the Delaware Department of Justice.

BlackRock declined to comment on its S-1.

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