SEC Defers Decisions on Fidelity, Invesco Bitcoin ETFs (2)

The US Securities and Exchange Commission delayed making a decision again on whether to approve the first US exchange-traded fund that invests directly in Bitcoin, disappointing advocates just days after a court ruling viewed by many as clearing a path for the long-awaited product.

The primary US securities regulator, whose three-part mandate includes investor protection, deferred on filings from Invesco, Valkyrie, Fidelity and WisdomTree, according to documents posted on its website Thursday. SEC Chair Gary Gensler has consistently justified the opposition to the ETFs as necessary to protect investors from an industry that he says is rife with fraud. …