A chronology of the official documents behind US spot bitcoin ETFs: SEC orders, a federal appeals court ruling and the first trading day, from the 2018 disapproval to the generic listing standards of 2025 and 2026. It lists documents, not opinions about them.
Data as of · 15 dated actions, Jul 26, 2018 to Jan 28, 2026 · each linked to the SEC, court or issuer document it comes from
| Date | Body | Type | What the document says | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 26, 2018 | SEC | Order | Disapproved Bats BZX’s rule change to list the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust, after setting aside the staff’s earlier disapproval | Release 34-83723; filed June 30, 2016 | SEC Release 34-83723 |
| Jun 29, 2022 | SEC | Order | Disapproved NYSE Arca’s proposal to list Grayscale Bitcoin Trust shares as an ETP | Release 34-95180; filed Oct 19, 2021 | SEC Release 34-95180 |
| Aug 29, 2023 | Court | Court opinion | D.C. Circuit granted Grayscale’s petition and vacated the SEC’s disapproval order, finding it “arbitrary and capricious” | Grayscale Investments v. SEC, No. 22-1142; argued Mar 7, 2023 | D.C. Circuit opinion |
| Oct 23, 2023 | Court | Court mandate | The court issued its mandate “in accordance with the judgment of August 29, 2023,” making the vacatur and remand final | No. 22-1142 | D.C. Circuit mandate (CourtListener copy) |
| Jan 9, 2024 | SEC | Statement | SEC said its @SECGov X account was compromised and the “unauthorized tweet regarding bitcoin ETFs was not made by the SEC or its staff” | A correction the day before the real approval | SEC statement |
| Jan 10, 2024 | SEC | Order | Granted accelerated approval of NYSE Arca, Nasdaq and Cboe BZX rule changes to list and trade bitcoin-based Commodity-Based Trust Shares and Trust Units | Release 34-99306; 11 products named | SEC Release 34-99306 |
| Jan 10, 2024 | SEC | Statement | Chair Gensler said the Commission approved the listing and trading of a number of spot bitcoin ETP shares; Commissioner Crenshaw dissented; Commissioners Uyeda and Peirce issued statements | Four commissioner statements | Gensler statement |
| Jan 11, 2024 | Issuer | First trading day | iShares Bitcoin Trust shares commenced trading on Nasdaq under the ticker IBIT | Stated in the trust’s FY2024 Form 10-K | IBIT Form 10-K |
| Sep 20, 2024 | SEC | Order | Granted accelerated approval for Nasdaq ISE to list and trade options on the iShares Bitcoin Trust | Release 34-101128 | SEC Release 34-101128 |
| Oct 18, 2024 | SEC | Order | Granted accelerated approval for NYSE American to list and trade options on spot bitcoin ETFs | Release 34-101386; 11 funds | SEC Release 34-101386 |
| Jul 1, 2025 | SEC | Staff statement | Division of Corporation Finance staff statement on how disclosure requirements apply to registered offerings by crypto asset ETPs | “Crypto Asset Exchange-Traded Products” | SEC staff statement |
| Jul 29, 2025 | SEC | Order | Granted accelerated approval to allow in-kind creations and redemptions for bitcoin and ether Commodity-Based Trust Shares; earlier approvals allowed cash only | Release 34-103571; press release 2025-101 | SEC Release 34-103571 |
| Jul 29, 2025 | SEC | Order | Approved Nasdaq ISE rules removing the 25,000-contract position limit for IBIT options and, separately, FLEX options on IBIT | Releases 34-103564 and 34-103563 | SEC Release 34-103564 |
| Sep 17, 2025 | SEC | Order | Granted accelerated approval to Nasdaq, Cboe BZX and NYSE Arca rule changes adopting generic listing standards for Commodity-Based Trust Shares, so qualifying products can list without an individual rule filing | Release 34-103995 | SEC Release 34-103995 |
| Jan 28, 2026 | SEC | Order | Approved NYSE and NYSE Texas rule changes adopting generic listing standards for Commodity-Based Trust Shares (new Rule 8.201) | Release 34-104723 | SEC Release 34-104723 |
Each row is one official document or filing, dated by the document itself. The list is selective, not complete: it follows the path to the first listings and the main later expansions (options, in-kind creations, generic listing standards). The Exchange Act’s rule-change process is formally “Section 19(b)”; the products are legally “Commodity-Based Trust Shares.” The January 10, 2024 order text gives no vote tally, so none is stated here.
A spot bitcoin ETF holds actual bitcoin and trades on a stock exchange, so its shares can be bought through an ordinary brokerage account. In the US each exchange had to get SEC approval to list such products. For the funds’ sizes see the largest spot bitcoin ETFs and spot bitcoin ETF flows, explained.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit granted Grayscale’s petition and vacated the SEC’s 2022 disapproval order, finding the Commission had failed to explain why it treated spot bitcoin ETPs differently from the bitcoin futures ETPs it had approved.1 The court issued its mandate on October 23, 2023.2
The SEC granted accelerated approval of rule changes by NYSE Arca, Nasdaq and Cboe BZX to list and trade bitcoin-based Commodity-Based Trust Shares and Trust Units. The order, Release 34-99306, names 11 products, from Grayscale Bitcoin Trust and the Bitwise, iShares and Fidelity funds to ARK 21Shares, Invesco Galaxy, VanEck, WisdomTree, Franklin, Valkyrie and Hashdex.3
Chair Gensler wrote that the Commission “approved the listing and trading of a number of spot bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) shares,” and that the approval was limited to ETPs holding one non-security commodity, bitcoin.4 Commissioner Crenshaw dissented; Commissioner Uyeda concurred with concerns; Commissioner Peirce called it “the end of an unnecessary, but consequential, saga.” The day before, the SEC had said an approval tweet from its account was unauthorized.5
The iShares Bitcoin Trust’s annual report states that its shares commenced trading on Nasdaq under the ticker IBIT on January 11, 2024.6
On September 20, 2024 the SEC approved Nasdaq ISE’s rules to list options on the iShares Bitcoin Trust.7 On October 18 it approved NYSE American rules to list options on 11 spot bitcoin funds.8 On July 29, 2025 it approved Nasdaq ISE rules removing the 25,000-contract position limit for IBIT options and, separately, FLEX options on IBIT.9
The SEC approved rule changes allowing in-kind creations and redemptions, where shares are exchanged for bitcoin itself rather than cash, for bitcoin and ether Commodity-Based Trust Shares. The earlier approvals had allowed cash creations and redemptions only.9
The SEC approved Nasdaq, Cboe BZX and NYSE Arca rule changes adopting generic listing standards, so a qualifying commodity-based product can list without its own rule filing. The order lists criteria including that the commodity trades on a market in the Intermarket Surveillance Group, or underlies a futures contract traded on a regulated market for at least six months.10 On January 28, 2026 it approved NYSE and NYSE Texas rules adopting the same kind of standards.11
For information only. Not financial advice. See the terms of use.