According to CoinDesk, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink stated that an ether exchange-traded fund (ETF) could still be possible even if the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) designates the cryptocurrency as a security. This would increase regulatory scrutiny around the second-largest digital asset. Fink expressed his optimism during an interview on Fox Business, despite the SEC's ongoing investigation into whether ether should be classified as a security.
Eight potential issuers, including BlackRock, have submitted filings with the SEC to bring a spot ether ETF to the market. The regulator's final decision is due in May, with industry experts predicting that applications may not be approved, regardless of the SEC's findings on ether's nature. BlackRock is also one of the 11 issuers of spot bitcoin ETFs, with its iShares Bitcoin Fund (IBIT) being the most successful, having collected over $15 billion in assets in just 2 1/2 months.