Multiple tweets on Crypto X have raised hopes that a spot Bitcoin ETF could be approved on Friday (Jan. 5), although some analysts do not think that will happen so soon.

Speculation that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve a Bitcoin spot ETF today has reached a fever pitch on social media.

In addition to a widely retweeted tweet from a reporter, a tweet from Grayscale’s head of legal saying he “just filled out some forms” fueled speculation that the approval could come today.

However, some analysts still expect approval could come next week.

TechCrunch reporter Jacquelyn Melinek said in an article published on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday that multiple ETFs will be approved and "expect something tomorrow," citing sources "very close to the matter."

Others were particularly intrigued by a cryptic tweet from Grayscale’s chief legal officer, which said he was “just filling out some forms,” and which has garnered 1.9 million views and 6,700 likes since it was posted.

Meanwhile, the#BTCETFhashtag and the term “Bitcoin ETF” are currently trending on social media, and Bitcoin prices have also been climbing since their sharp drop on January 3, up 3.4% in the past 24 hours, according to TradingView data.

“The rumor mill is running at full speed,” trader Scott Melkor said in response to repeated speculation on social media.

Analysts pour cold water on rumors

However, Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart described much of the speculation surrounding the Jan. 5 approval as noise and said he still expects the approval to come between Jan. 8 and 10.

Similarly, attorney and commercial litigator Joe Carlasare noted that the public comment period for several ETF applications does not end until midnight on January 5.

Eric Balchunas, senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, explained that the SEC is currently providing final comments and issuers will soon file final 19b-4 and S-1 forms.

Both forms will need to be approved by the SEC before the ETF can begin trading, but a Bitcoin spot ETF will require an approved Form 19b-4 to be effectively approved.

Scott Johnsson, general partner at VB Capital, said he “remains skeptical” that an ETF can be approved by next week.

“Unless the 19b-4 filing is fully clear and the SEC doesn’t care about concurrent approval (seems far-fetched?)” Johnsson wrote.

There are 14 issuers vying for a Bitcoin spot ETF, including BlackRock, Valkyrie, ARK Invest/21 Shares, Bitwise and Fidelity.