SEC blocks the startup of Reality Shares Global Currency ETF

The number of filings seeking the approval of exchange-traded funds by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission has been reduced by one. According to a letter issued by SEC officials earlier this week, the filing submitted by Reality Shares Global Currency ETF trust was ordered to be withdrawn, and the applicant has reportedly expedited its compliance with the request. It did not take long for the SEC to request filing withdrawal in this particular case; the parent company of the ETF, Blockforce Capital, had presented its proposal just one day prior to the aforementioned letter. Although the letter did not go into specifics as to why the SEC moved so fast to request withdrawal, some analysts believe that the complexity of the proposed ETF may have been a strong factor. Unlike other cryptocurrency ETF filings currently being evaluated by the SEC, the investment portfolio that Reality Shares proposed to track involved more than just digital currency tokens; it also included Bitcoin futures currently traded in the Chicago Board Options Exchange as well as in the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Moreover, this ETF would have also tracked investments related to major fiat currencies such as the U.S. dollar and others that are widely used for international settlements and remittances. Like similar ETF applications pending before the SEC, Reality Shares would have sought the New York Stock Exchange ARCA network for listing and trading purposes. It should be noted that NYSE ARCA has partnered with a financial technology startup that filed a cryptocurrency ETF application earlier this year, and it is considered to be one of the most likely candidates for approval. Interestingly, Reality Shares managers never indicated an intention of investing directly in Bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency, and this aspect would have set it apart from the various digital currency ETF filings pending SEC evaluation. In fact, instruments such as the Invesco DB U.S. Dollar Index Bullish Fund have been trading on Wall Street for a while, and they offer investors an opportunity to speculate on foreign currency exchange without actually putting "skin in the game." In the case of Reality Shares, however, there is no official Bitcoin futures index, although this is something that will likely emerge in the near future.