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The big dawgs have been chatting about whether to approve an Ethereum ETF, which has rehashed two long held conversations in the Web3 space…
Conversation 1: Is Ethereum even a commodity?
Commodities tend to have less stringent regulations (and are more likely to be packaged up as ETFs) while securities are watched closely by the SEC.
Commodities = ‘unchanging things’ like wheat or gold.
Securities = ‘changeable’ things, like shares in Apple.
E.g. What if tomorrow, Tim Cook changed Apple’s business model to selling handmade jewelry on Etsy?
It’s because of this potential for change, that securities are more heavily regulated. Now — the SEC has not formally commented on this debate, but there are OG references hinting that SEC Chair Gary Gensler sees ETH as a commodity.
(Deep in his secret, degenerate heart <3).
Conversation 2: Do folks even want an ETH ETF?
The argument for an ETH ETF goes something like this:
More investment = a higher Ethereum price.
(Which = everyone being able to afford that life size wax figure of Stone Cold Steve Austin cracking a beer that they’ve wanted for their home office).
No? Ok. You’re the weird one, not us.
The argument against an ETH ETF goes something like this:
If you hold Ethereum, you can propose updates, changes and advancements to the network. Putting a whole bunch of Ethereum in the hands of a select few financial firms puts the network at risk of centralized control.
But here’s the thing — none of this actually matters RE: ETH ETF approval!
Cause the SEC has already painted themselves into a corner by approving the trade of Ethereum futures in the US.
(Futures = a way to bet on the future price of ETH via the stock market).
☝️ And that’s exactly how/why they were forced to approve a Bitcoin ETF.
