The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would consider a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) if the Bitcoin market cap hits $2 trillion
Ark Investment Management CEO Cathie Wood believes that it is unlikely for the SEC to approve a Bitcoin ETF if the cryptocurrency’s market cap is below a trillion dollars. She made this point while speaking at Tuesday’s ETF Trends Big Ideas event.
According to Woods, the flood of demand has to be satisfied for the SEC to feel comfortable with a Bitcoin ETF in the market. The cryptocurrency space has been battling to get a Bitcoin ETF approved for nearly half a decade.
Despite several attempts from VanEck and others, the SEC is yet to approve any Bitcoin ETF. At the time of this report, the Bitcoin market cap is $8 billion shy of $600 billion. Thus, according to Woods’ analysis, the Bitcoin market needs to double its market cap before the Securities and Exchange Commission can consider approving a Bitcoin ETF.
Woods admitted that she would be bullish on a Bitcoin ETF if Gary Gensler, the former CFTC commissioner, and MIT digital currency professor, is appointed as the SEC chairman. President Joe Biden has put forward Gensler’s name for the role, and Woods thinks his pro-Bitcoin stance would help the crypto space get the long-anticipated Bitcoin ETF.
If appointed, Gensler would be the most crypto-knowledgeable SEC chair. However, Gensler stated that while he is a Bitcoin believer, he believes more in blockchain technology and smart contracts.
Woods very bullish on BTC price
Cathie Woods also touched on Bitcoin’s price as she made some bold projections regarding the cryptocurrency’s price and adoption. Citing MicroStrategy as an example, Woods believes if every S&P 500 company invested 1% of their assets in Bitcoin, the cryptocurrency’s price would spike by $40,000 from its current price.
Woods further believes that if institutions allocate between 2.5% and 6.5% of their funds in Bitcoin, then its price could spike by $200,000 to $500,000. The leading cryptocurrency surged by over 400% last year and started 2021 excellently after reaching a new all-time high of nearly $42,000. However, it has since lost momentum, and it is currently trading above the $32,000 mark on most exchanges.