A recent document has indicated that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is currently seeking public feedback on a proposal submitted by Nasdaq to initiate options trading for BlackRock’s Bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund (ETF). An analyst has suggested that this options trading could become available by the end of February. On Friday the 19th of January, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission gave its recognition to Nasdaq’s suggestion to allow the listing and trading of options tied to BlackRock’s Bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund. The financial authority invited public feedback within a three-week timeframe regarding Nasdaq’s request to initiate options trading for BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT). An excerpt from the submission stated: The Exchange plans to revise its guidelines under Options 4, Section 3, which outlines qualifications for the underlying securities. This change would permit the Exchange to offer options trading for the iShares Bitcoin Trust (referred to as the “Trust”), recognizing it as a suitable unit for such transactions. In related news, BlackRock’s Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) has reached a milestone of $1 billion in assets under management, and the rate at which capital is leaving the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) has decreased. To make things clear, options are a type of derivative that grant the owner the privilege to buy or sell a specific underlying asset at an agreed-upon price and within a set timeframe. These financial tools are not only exchangeable among private parties but can also be transacted on open markets as uniform agreements. Moreover, it’s important to acknowledge that the Nasdaq isn’t the sole exchange suggesting the listing and trading of options based on a Bitcoin ETF. The SEC has initiated a 21-day period for public commentary in response to the Cboe’s proposal concerning the listing and trading of options on Bitcoin-related Exchange Traded Products (ETPs). | Derived from information by James Seyffart/X. Bloomberg’s ETF analyst James Seyffart has provided his perspective on the probability of options being available for trading on spot Bitcoin ETFs in the near future.