There could be two main reasons why the price of Ether has barely moved despite the landmark approval of spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETF) in the United States.
On May 23, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved eight spot Ether ETFs to be listed on their respective exchanges. Ether (ETH) fell 3.4% just before the news, recovering by around 5% shortly after. ETH is trading at $3,806 at the time of writing.
Crypto commentator Zach Rynes argues that the lack of movement reflects the notion that “everyone who wanted to buy the approval already did.”
Ether had already surged 29% over the past week after reports suggested the SEC may have pivoted its stance toward ETF approvals.
Rynes and many others also note that while the ETFs have been approved, they still haven’t been cleared to launch. That will require an approved S-1 filing, which is a comprehensive document including details on the firm’s financials and risk profile, as well as the securities they intend to offer.
VanEck has just sent its amended S-1 filing to the SEC, and analysts have been saying it could take weeks to months for the S-1 approvals.
Rynes believes the next major price force for Ether will be ETF inflows once they begin trading.
“ETFs haven’t actually launched yet, so net new capital inflow is still to come,” Rynes wrote, with crypto research firm Second Mountain echoing a similar sentiment.
“Expect a massive capital inflow in the first week, potentially reaching billions,” Second Mountain stated in a May 23 X post just before the SEC approved the ETFs.
However, some say it might not immediately lead to an upward trend.
Bitcoin’s price dropped 15% after spot Bitcoin ETFs were approved for trading on Jan. 10. According to CoinMarketCap data, it took 30 days for the price to spike 30% to $51,870.
Related: Ether surges 18% amid new hope for spot Ether ETF approvals
There are also lingering concerns that Grayscale’s announcement of its plans to convert its Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE) into a spot Ether ETF could result in significant outflows — similar to Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) after the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in January.
“Grayscale also re-filed the ETHE registration they’d withdrawn. Remember GBTC outflows? Now it’s $11B+ ETH that’s been trapped for 7 years,” pseudonymous crypto trader Rho Rider warned in a May 23 X post.
Since spot Bitcoin ETFs started trading on Jan. 11, GBTC has shed a total of $17.6 billion in assets, per Farside data.
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“ETH is stupidly undervalued,” added independent Ethereum educator Sassal, arguing that the market has had only three days to “price in the ETF approval.”
Meanwhile, Bitcoin (BTC) stumbled slightly by 1.2% to $67,362 following the announcement but has since recovered to $67,706 at the time of writing.
Around the same time, Pepe (PEPE) hit another new all-time high, reaching $0.00001531, a 5% increase within the hour following the approval news.
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This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.