The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has recently declared the First Trust SkyBridge Bitcoin ETF registration statement “abandoned.” The decision was made public through a screenshot shared by Eric Balchunas, a senior Bloomberg ETF analyst, indicating that on March 12, 2024, the SEC had officially ordered the abandonment.
The registration statement, jointly filed by First Trust and SkyBridge under Section 6(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, failed to become effective after nine months of consideration. The SEC had notified First Trust and SkyBridge of the potential for abandonment if no further action was taken to amend or withdraw the filing but received no response.
This event marks another setback for the asset managers, who previously saw their application for a spot Bitcoin ETF rejected by the SEC in 2022. This followed an initial attempt by fund manager Valkyrie to list an ETF on the New York Stock Exchange in March 2021.
In addition, on December 14, First Trust filed a Form N1-A with the SEC to launch a new Bitcoin-linked product, the First Trust Bitcoin Buffer ETF. This fund aimed to participate in the positive price returns of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust or another exchange-traded product (ETP) offering exposure to Bitcoin’s performance. However, no further updates have been provided since the filing.
Despite the approval of other Bitcoin ETFs, such as BlackRock’s, which became one of the first to gain SEC approval after revisions, First Trust and SkyBridge did not reapply. In conversation with ETF educator Nate Geraci, Balchunas noted that he was unsure why the firms did not refile. He added this was “a good combo,” predicting that the asset managers might “jump in late.”
First Trust and SkyBridge’s failure to secure approval for their spot Bitcoin ETF contrasts with the achievements of other issuers, such as BlackRock, which has seen significant attention and success in the space. Notably, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and Fidelity’s FBTC have recorded substantial inflows, with IBIT adding $2.07 billion in a single week, surpassing even MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin holdings. This performance has cemented BlackRock as the second-largest ETF based on total assets under management among all the U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs.
Meanwhile, Anthony Scaramucci, the Founder of SkyBridge Capital, has publicly expressed his enthusiasm for BlackRock’s IBIT’s rapid acquisition of Bitcoin. He was also seen praising the significant growth in inflows to BlackRock’s IBIT, noting that they surged from $3 billion to $5 billion within the first month after its introduction on January 11.
