Cameron Winklevoss, the co-founder of the American crypto exchange, was disheartened by the US securities and exchange commission’s (SEC) for failing to green light the Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (EFT) applications. He explained that the SEC regulatory action had pushed the investor to operate in a “toxic and unregulated” business environment when offering the crypto products.
On Sunday, July 2, the Winklevoss brother condemned the SEC for rejecting approval of Gemini’s Bitcoin EFT application submitted in 2013. They confessed that despite the effort made by the crypto exchange to comply with the Bitcoin EFT requirements, the SEC has regularly refused to approve the Gemini application.
Why is the SEC Against Bitcoin ETF?
The Winklevoss twin lamented that for around 10 years, the SEC has exposed the investors to “utter disaster” depriving them an opportunity to explore viable investments. The Gemini co-founders described the SEC as a failed securities regulatory agency.
In the report, the Winklevoss twins confessed that the unwillingness of the SEC to approve Bitcoin ETF applications has exposed the US crypto entrepreneurs to engage in the buying and selling of “toxic products.”
Citing the case of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust project (GBTC) that forced the investors to incur “astronomical fees” when trading Bitcoin at a discounted price. In a recent report, the YChart analysts observed that the discount for GBTC net assets was 30% more than the actual Bitcoin prices.
In 2022 financial experts from Morningstar observed that the GBTC annual fee was 2% more than the average Bitcoin charge, which amounted to 0.40%.
Besides the issuance of “toxic products,” the co-founder of Gemini argued that the SEC’s reluctance to approve Bitcoin ETF projects had forced the investors to flee licensed and regulated trading platforms. He added that for years crypto investors has issued several proposals that the SEC required to adopt to safeguard the investor’s interests. He mentioned that the SEC should reconsider reviewing the current dismissal record to protect the investors.
Winklevoss requested the SEC to prioritize implementing strategies to protect the investors rather than exercising exceeding statutory power. He added that SEC should abandon its plans to become an economic life government gatekeeper.
Will Bitcoin ETF Approval Support Compliance to Securities Regulations?
The Winklevoss comment on SEC regulatory action came at a time when other firms were seeking to acquire approval for Bitcoin ETF. The SEC’s delays in approving Bitcoin ETF have elicited mixed feelings among the best-performing crypto and tech firms such as WisdomTree, Invseco, ARK Invest, Valkyrie, and BlackRock. Recently it was reported that the SEC received multiple filings and ammendment on Bitcoin ETF applications.
In a statement, the SEC confirmed that most of the submitted filings on Bitcoin ETF were inadequate and lacked clarity. Therefore, the commission requested the responsible fund managers to revise their filing to clarify critical details. In addition, the SEC directed interested firms to resubmit their revised Bitcoin ETFs applications to the commission for regulatory reviewing and approval.
In January, the SEC sued Gemini for contravening the securities regulation. The SEC considered the crypto product Gemini’s Earn offered by the crypto exchange as an unregistered securities. Primarily Gemini Earn provided the retail client with a platform to lease their crypto to Genesis.
Subsequently, following the suspension of the Gemini Earn platform, the co-founder of the embattled crypto exchange filed a lawsuit against DCG and the chief executive Barry Silbert. Winklevoss brothers argued that Gemini’s parent company DCG and the executive failed to honor their $900 loan repayment plan issued to its subsidiary, Genesis. At court, Winklevoss lamented that DCG was risking defaulting on the loan repayment after missing to settle $630 million.
