What Is Web 3.0 and How BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF Is Part of It

The iShares Spot Bitcoin ETF Proposed by BlackRock

The iShares spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) proposed by investment firm BlackRock has been listed on the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), hinting at the potential approval by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

On Oct. 23, Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas tweeted that the DTCC listing was “all part of the process” of bringing a crypto ETF to market. The iShares spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETF has a ticker symbol of IBTC for a possible listing on the Nasdaq stock exchange, which applied to list and trade shares of the investment vehicle in June.

“This is [the] first spot ETF listed on DTCC, none of the others on there (yet),” said Balchunas. “Definitely notable that BlackRock is leading the charge on these logistics (seeding, ticker, dtcc) that tend to happen just prior to launch. It’s hard not to view this as them getting a signal that approval is certain/imminent.”

Balchunas speculated that BlackRock may have already received the green light for listing the ETF from the SEC or was “prepping everything assuming so.” According to the date of BlackRock’s application, the SEC has until Jan. 10, 2024, to reach a final decision on approval or denial of the ETF.

The potential listing of the iShares spot Bitcoin ETF is an exciting development in the world of Web 3.0, as it may be the first ETF to be listed on Nasdaq. It will be interesting to see how this development affects the architecture of a Web 3.0 application, as well as the list of Web 3.0 tools and websites.

If the application of BlackRock is approved, it may open the door for the SEC to review a variety of spot crypto ETF filings, such as those from ARK Investment, Fidelity and Valkyrie. The SEC has not yet approved any Bitcoin or Ether (ETH) spot applications for listing on a U.S. exchange, but allowed investment vehicles linked to Bitcoin futures in October 2021.

The BTCC listing came after a U.S. appellate court issued a mandate enforcing the Aug. 29 decision, which would require the SEC to review a spot BTC ETF application from Grayscale Investments. Grayscale filed a registration statement with the SEC to list shares of its Bitcoin trust on the New York Stock Exchange Arca, under the ticker symbol GBTC, on Oct. 19.

The advent of Web 3.0 has been eagerly awaited by many, and the potential for a spot crypto ETF filing could be the start of the new era. Thus, with the metaverse being part of Web 3.0, the architecture of a Web 3.0 application could be the ideal tool to list the shares of the Bitcoin trust. This could be the beginning of a new list of Web 3.0 websites, and the start of a Twitter Web 3.0.