There is no doubt that BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) application — and the flood of contenders that followed — has buoyed the bulls. It could signal the winds of change in the regulatory sphere, they say. It could bring Bitcoin exposure to the masses, they holler.
While there might be some truth in these statements, we need to take a step back and look at the bigger picture. We should not be in a world where the mere possibility of a spot Bitcoin ETF coming to fruition in the United States sends markets into overdrive. BlackRock’s potentially oversized impact on Bitcoin’s (BTC) price trajectory should give everyone in the Bitcoin community pause for thought rather than be a cause of celebration.
A spot Bitcoin ETF would clearly be a simple way for U.S. retirement funds to gain exposure to Bitcoin’s upside, and it’s very possible that an approved ETF in the U.S. would drive significant price appreciation in the years that follow. But what will it do to further Bitcoin’s cause — to decentralize finance, empower the unbanked and revolutionize how we interact with money globally? Very little, if anything.
The TradFi invasion
BlackRock’s application and the discussions around it have certainly served as a reminder of the distrust that exists between some parts of the crypto community and the traditional finance world.
Related: Ripple verdict could spark a new bull market — or more malaise
The timing of BlackRock’s foray into Bitcoin ETFs is particularly intriguing and has sent conspiracists wild. Given the Securities and Exchange Commission’s lawsuits against Binance and Coinbase, some believe the agency is disarming crypto-native firms to pave the way for the likes of BlackRock to take over the crypto mantle.
Of course, such claims are unsubstantiated speculation. However, they demonstrate how the more deeply involved traditional finance (TradFi) entities become in the digital assets space, the more we risk Bitcoin becoming just another asset class and losing sight of its intended purpose and true value proposition.
These are the key dates and timeline for the BlackRock…
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