Feb. 22, 2022
To Whom it May Concern, I find the SEC's lack of transparency regarding any and all Bitcoin ETF proposals very disheartening as an American investor. The SEC claims to want to "protect investors", but it seems the organization is doing the opposite. American markets are falling behind other developed nations/markets when there are multiple Bitcoin ETP's available in a multitude of other markets worldwide. American investors need a safe, regulated product to be able to invest in an asset as unique and technologically advanced as Bitcoin; by continually denying spot Bitcoin ETFs, specifically the conversion of GBTC to an ETF, you are depriving American investors of this right. You claim Bitcoin markets can be manipulated and this is the reasoning for denials, however there are numerous regulated Bitcoin exchanges and Bitcoin ETPs across the world that seem to negate your argument. To the average investor such as myself, this makes the SEC look nothing more than secretive, shady, if not downright fraudulent in its practices and reasoning regarding this matter. The approval of the conversion of GBTC to an ETF, resulting in the first spot Bitcoin ETF in U.S. Markets, would be met with exuberance from investors with the chance to invest in Bitcoin through normal brokerage and retirement accounts. Sincerely, Devlin Thompson