The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has delayed its decision on a proposed spot %Litecoin (CRYPTO: $LTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Canary Capital has applied to launch an ETF that would track the spot price of Litecoin, a leading cryptocurrency and one of the larger “altcoins” that are any crypto other than %Bitcoin (CRYPTO: $BTC).
The Wall Street regulator’s delay of the Litecoin ETF comes after the agency also delayed several other applications for spot crypto ETFs, including ones proposed for XRP (CRYPTO: $XRP) and %Dogecoin (CRYPTO: $DOGE).
Crypto enthusiasts had high hopes that the Litecoin ETF from Canary Capital would get the greenlight from the SEC.
But now, the securities regulator has announced a delay in its decision and taken the added step of opening a public comment period related to the Litecoin ETF.
“The Commission seeks comment on whether the proposal to list and trade Shares of the Trust, which would hold LTC, is designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices or raises any new or novel concerns not previously contemplated by the Commission,” wrote the SEC in a notice announcing the delay in its decision.
Canary Capital applied for the Litecoin ETF last October.
Litecoin currently has a $6.6 billion U.S. market capitalization and is a cryptocurrency that runs on an open source blockchain whose code is copied directly from Bitcoin.
Asset managers are eagerly awaiting decisions on a new crop of cryptocurrency ETFs under new SEC Chair Paul Atkins, who took the helm of the regulator in April of this year.
Crypto bulls have been calling for new ETFs that track the spot price of various cryptocurrencies such as XRP, Dogecoin, %Solana (CRYPTO: $SOL) and Litecoin.
There haven’t been any new crypto ETFs approved since spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ones were given the greenlight in the first half of 2024.
Litecoin is currently trading at $81.97 U.S., having declined 21% this year.
