Bitwise Ethereum ETF Notes $100 Million Pantera Interest and Seed Investment in Filing

Crypto index fund manager Bitwise Asset Management has stated that Pentra Capital Management LP plans to invest $100 million in equivalent shares when the SEC approves the trading of Ethereum ETF.

The detail was in a revised version of Bitwise’s S-1 registration form with the Securities and Exchange Commission for its Bitwise Ethereum ETF. The filing also noted that Bitwise has secured $2.5 million worth of seed capital for the ETF. Seed capital is required ahead of the launch of an ETF and is usually provided by an institutional investor.

This follows an update from competitor BlackRock, which secured $10 million in seed capital for its iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) at the end of May.

The revised Bitwise filing indicated that because having an interest in making a particular investment is not a legal commitment, depending on market conditions, these potential buyers could buy more, fewer, or even walk away when trading begins.

It further stated, however, that if Pantera Capital Management purchases the shares as promised, they cannot trade them in any open market during a 6-month lock up period following the purchase.

Such shares can only be disposed of through redemption or transactions with one or more authorized organizations.

The final filings are the last step in the approval process before spot Ether ETFs can go public. SEC Chair Gary Gensler believes this will happen very soon.

According to Binance spot trading data, Ethereum is currently trading at around $3,557, with an almost 4% gain within the last 24 hours—likely a sign that traders think Ethereum is winning the regulation war against Gensler’s SEC.

Consensys shared last night reports that the SEC’s enforcement division has closed its investigation into “Ethereum 2.0.” That’s shorthand to refer to post-merge Ethereum, which saw the network switch from proof of work to proof of stake consensus.

The dropped investigation means the SEC will not pursue charges alleging that sales of ETH are security transactions.

“Today we’re happy to announce a major win for Ethereum developers, technology providers, and industry participants: the Enforcement Division of the SEC has notified us that it is closing its investigation into Ethereum 2.0,” the company posted on Twitter last night. “This means that the SEC will not bring charges alleging that sales of ETH are securities transactions.”