Self-Regulatory Organizations; Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc.; Notice of Filing of Amendment No. 2 to a Proposed Rule Change To List and Trade Shares of the ARK 21Shares Ethereum ETF Under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4), Commodity-Based Trust Shares, 46514-46527 [2024-11708]

Download as PDF 46514 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices 19(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the Act.17 At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed rule change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule change if it appears to the Commission that such action is: (i) necessary or appropriate in the public interest; (ii) for the protection of investors; or (iii) otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. If the Commission takes such action, the Commission shall institute proceedings to determine whether the proposed rule should be approved or disapproved. IV. Solicitation of Comments Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views and arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods: Electronic Comments • Use the Commission’s internet comment form (https://www.sec.gov/ rules/sro.shtml); or • Send an email to rule-comments@ sec.gov. Please include file number SR– ISE–2024–19 on the subject line. lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 Paper Comments • Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549–1090. All submissions should refer to file number SR–ISE–2024–19. This file number should be included on the subject line if email is used. To help the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently, please use only one method. The Commission will post all comments on the Commission’s internet website (https://www.sec.gov/ rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that are filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating to the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person, other than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for website viewing and printing in the Commission’s Public Reference Room, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549, on official 17 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(ii). VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 business days between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of the filing also will be available for inspection and copying at the principal office of the Exchange. Do not include personal identifiable information in submissions; you should submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. We may redact in part or withhold entirely from publication submitted material that is obscene or subject to copyright protection. All submissions should refer to file number SR–ISE–2024–19 and should be submitted on or before June 20, 2024. For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated authority.18 Sherry R. Haywood, Assistant Secretary. [FR Doc. 2024–11701 Filed 5–28–24; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 8011–01–P SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION [Release No. 34–100216; File No. SR– CboeBZX–2023–070] Self-Regulatory Organizations; Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc.; Notice of Filing of Amendment No. 2 to a Proposed Rule Change To List and Trade Shares of the ARK 21Shares Ethereum ETF Under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4), Commodity-Based Trust Shares May 22, 2024. On September 6, 2023, Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc. (‘‘BZX’’ or ‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (‘‘Commission’’), pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’) 1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2 a proposed rule change to list and trade shares (‘‘Shares’’) of the ARK 21Shares Ethereum ETF (‘‘Trust’’) under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4), Commodity-Based Trust Shares. The proposed rule change was published for comment in the Federal Register on September 27, 2023.3 On September 27, 2023, pursuant to Section 19(b)(2) of the Act,4 the 18 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). 2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 3 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 98467 (Sept. 21, 2023), 88 FR 66515 (‘‘Notice’’). Comments on the proposed rule change are available at: https://www.sec.gov/comments/sr-cboebzx-2023070/srcboebzx2023070.htm. 4 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2). 1 15 PO 00000 Frm 00157 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 Commission designated a longer period within which to approve the proposed rule change, disapprove the proposed rule change, or institute proceedings to determine whether to disapprove the proposed rule change.5 On December 18, 2023, the Commission instituted proceedings under Section 19(b)(2)(B) of the Act 6 to determine whether to approve or disapprove the proposed rule change.7 On February 14, 2024, the Exchange filed Amendment No. 1, which replaced and superseded the proposed rule change in its entirety. On March 19, 2024, the Commission provided notice of Amendment No. 1 to the proposed rule change and designated a longer period for Commission action on the proposed rule change, as modified by Amendment No. 1.8 On May 21, 2024, the Exchange filed Amendment No. 2 to the proposed rule change as described in Items I and II below, which Items have been prepared by the Exchange. Amendment No. 2 amended and replaced the proposed rule change, as modified by Amendment No. 1, in its entirety. The Commission is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the proposed rule change, as modified by Amendment No. 2, from interested persons. I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement of the Terms of Substance of the Proposed Rule Change Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc. (‘‘BZX’’ or the ‘‘Exchange’’) is filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (‘‘Commission’’ or ‘‘SEC’’) a proposed rule change to list and trade shares of the ARK 21Shares Ethereum ETF (the ‘‘Trust’’),9 under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4), Commodity-Based Trust Shares. The text of the proposed rule change is also available on the Exchange’s website (https://markets.cboe.com/us/ equities/regulation/rule_filings/bzx/), at the Exchange’s Office of the Secretary, and at the Commission’s Public Reference Room. 5 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 98565, 88 FR 68187 (Oct. 3, 2023). 6 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B). 7 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 99196, 88 FR 88685 (Dec. 22, 2023). 8 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 99772, 89 FR 20721 (Mar. 25, 2024). 9 The Trust was formed as a Delaware statutory trust on September 5, 2023, and is operated as a grantor trust for U.S. federal tax purposes. The Trust has no fixed termination date. E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices II. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement of the Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change In its filing with the Commission, the Exchange included statements concerning the purpose of and basis for the proposed rule change and discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule change. The text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared summaries, set forth in sections A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such statements. A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement of the Purpose of, and Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 1. Purpose This Amendment No. 2 to SR– CboeBZX–2023–070 amends and replaces in its entirety the proposal as originally submitted on September 6, 2023 and as amended by Amendment No. 1 on February 14, 2024. The Exchange submits this Amendment No. 2 in order to clarify certain points and add additional details to the proposal. The Exchange proposes to list and trade the Shares under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4),10 which governs the listing and trading of Commodity-Based Trust Shares on the Exchange.11 21Shares US LLC is the sponsor of the Trust (the ‘‘Sponsor’’). The Shares will be registered with the Commission by means of the Trust’s registration statement on Form S–1 (the ‘‘Registration Statement’’).12 According to the Registration Statement, the Trust is neither an investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended,13 nor a commodity pool for purposes of 10 The Commission approved BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4) in Securities Exchange Act Release No. 65225 (August 30, 2011), 76 FR 55148 (September 6, 2011) (SR–BATS–2011–018). 11 Any of the statements or representations regarding the index composition, the description of the portfolio or reference assets, limitations on portfolio holdings or reference assets, dissemination and availability of index, reference asset, and intraday indicative values, or the applicability of Exchange listing rules specified in this filing to list a series of Other Securities (collectively, ‘‘Continued Listing Representations’’) shall constitute continued listing requirements for the Shares listed on the Exchange. 12 See the Registration Statement on Form S–1, dated September 6, 2023, submitted by the Sponsor on behalf of the Trust. The descriptions of the Trust, the Shares, and the Index (as defined below) contained herein are based, in part, on information in the Registration Statement. The Registration Statement is not yet effective, and the Shares will not trade on the Exchange until such time that the Registration Statement is effective. 13 15 U.S.C. 80a–1. VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 the Commodity Exchange Act (‘‘CEA’’), and neither the Trust nor the Sponsor is subject to regulation as a commodity pool operator or a commodity trading adviser in connection with the Shares. The Commission has historically approved or disapproved exchange filings to list and trade series of Trust Issued Receipts, including spot-based Commodity-Based Trust Shares, on the basis of whether the listing exchange has in place a comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement with a regulated market of significant size related to the underlying commodity to be held.14 With this in mind, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (‘‘CME’’) ether futures (‘‘Ether Futures’’) market, which launched in February 2021, is the proper market to consider in determining whether there is a related regulated market of significant size. Recently, the Commission issued an order granting approval for proposals to list bitcoin-based commodity trust and bitcoin-based trust issued receipts (these proposed funds are nearly identical to the Trust, but proposed to hold bitcoin instead of ether) (‘‘Spot Bitcoin ETPs’’).15 By way of background, in 14 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 78262 (July 8, 2016), 81 FR 78262 (July 14. 2016) (the ‘‘Winklevoss Proposal’’). The Winklevoss Proposal was subsequently disapproved by the Commission. See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 83723 (July 26, 2018), 83 FR 37579 (August 1, 2018) (the ‘‘Winklevoss Order’’). Prior orders from the Commission have pointed out that in every prior approval order for Commodity-Based Trust Shares, there has been a derivatives market that represents the regulated market of significant size, generally a Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the ‘‘CFTC’’) regulated futures market. Further to this point, the Commission’s prior orders have noted that the spot commodities and currency markets for which it has previously approved spot ETPs are generally unregulated and that the Commission relied on the underlying futures market as the regulated market of significant size that formed the basis for approving the series of Currency and Commodity-Based Trust Shares, including gold, silver, platinum, palladium, copper, and other commodities and currencies. The Commission specifically noted in the Winklevoss Order that the approval order issued related to the first spot gold ETP ‘‘was based on an assumption that the currency market and the spot gold market were largely unregulated.’’ See Winklevoss Order at 37592. As such, the regulated market of significant size test does not require that the spot ether market be regulated in order for the Commission to approve this proposal, and precedent makes clear that an underlying market for a spot commodity or currency being a regulated market would actually be an exception to the norm. These largely unregulated currency and commodity markets do not provide the same protections as the markets that are subject to the Commission’s oversight, but the Commission has consistently looked to surveillance sharing agreements with the underlying futures market in order to determine whether such products were consistent with the Act. 15 See Exchange Act Release No. 99306 (January 10, 2024), 89 FR 3008 (January 17, 2024) (SelfRegulatory Organizations; NYSE Arca, Inc.; The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC; Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc.; Order Granting Accelerated Approval of PO 00000 Frm 00158 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 46515 2022 the Commission disapproved proposals 16 to list Spot Bitcoin ETPs, including a proposal sponsored by Grayscale Investments, LLC (‘‘Grayscale’’).17 Grayscale appealed the decision with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, which held that the Commission had failed to adequately explain its reasoning that the proposing exchange had not established that the CME bitcoin futures market was a market of significant size related to spot bitcoin, or that the ‘‘other means’’ asserted were sufficient to satisfy the statutory standard. As a result, the court vacated the Grayscale Order and remanded the matter to the Commission.18 In considering the remand of the Grayscale Order and the Spot Bitcoin ETPs, the Commission determined in the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order that the CME bitcoin futures (‘‘Bitcoin Futures’’) market is highly correlated to spot bitcoin. Specifically, the Commission stated: [B]ased on the record before the Commission and the improved quality of the correlation analysis in the record. . .the Commission is able to conclude that fraud or manipulation that impacts prices in spot bitcoin markets would likely similarly impact CME bitcoin futures prices. And because the CME’s surveillance can assist in detecting those impacts on CME bitcoin futures prices, the Exchanges’ comprehensive surveillance-sharing agreement with the CME–a U.S. regulated market whose bitcoin futures market is consistently highly correlated to spot bitcoin, albeit not of ‘‘significant size’’ related to spot bitcoin–can be reasonably expected to assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices in the specific context of the [p]roposals.19 As further discussed below, both the Exchange and the Sponsor believe that this proposal and the included analysis are sufficient to establish that the CME Ether Futures market represents a regulated market of significant size as it Proposed Rule Changes, as Modified by Amendments Thereto, To List and Trade BitcoinBased Commodity-Based Trust Shares and Trust Units) (the ‘‘Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order’’). 16 See Order Disapproving a Proposed Rule Change To List and Trade Shares of the VanEck Bitcoin Trust Under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4), Commodity-Based Trust Shares, Securities Exchange Act Release No. 97102 (Mar. 10, 2023), 88 FR 16055 (Mar. 15, 2023) (SR–CboeBZX–2022–035) (‘‘VanEck Order II’’) and n.11 therein for the complete list of previous proposals. 17 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 95180 (June 29, 2022) 87 FR 40299 (July 6, 2022) (SR– NYSEArca-2021–90) (Order Disapproving a Proposed Rule Change, as Modified by Amendment No. 1, to List and Trade Shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust Under NYSE Arca Rule 8.201–E (CommodityBased Trust Shares) (the ‘‘Grayscale Order’’). 18 See Grayscale Investments, LLC v. SEC, 82 F.4th 1239 (D.C. Cir. 2023). 19 See the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order at 3011–3012. E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 46516 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 relates to the CME Ether Futures market and that this proposal should be approved. Background Ethereum is a decentralized smart contract platform that revolutionized the world of blockchain technology beyond its initial use case of peer-topeer payments. It introduced the idea of ‘‘smart contracts,’’ self-executing agreements with predefined rules, enabling developers and entrepreneurs worldwide to code and deploy decentralized applications on top of the Ethereum network. ‘‘Ether’’ or ‘‘ETH’’, the native crypto asset of the network, is the fuel that allows Ethereum to operate in the same way that we use oil to propel vehicles, heat buildings, and produce electricity in the physical world. Users must pay a ‘‘gas fee’’ or a transaction tax in ether for every transaction they perform on the network. The term ‘‘gas’’ refers to the unit that measures the computational effort required to execute specific operations on the Ethereum blockchain. Thus, ether is analogous to a digital commodity powering the Ethereum network. For instance, an entire virtual economy has emerged with ether as the unit of account and medium of exchange. This phenomenon is similar to the spontaneous adoption of commodities like coffee and, most notably, precious metals like gold as money by various civilizations throughout history, except this time, in a digital-native realm. With more than 5,946 monthly active developers as of June 2023, Ethereum is the world’s largest developer ecosystem. Moreover, the platform is explored and experimented with by various private banks and central banks globally. Since its launch in 2015, Ethereum has driven the evolution of the blockchain space with innovations, ranging from decentralized finance (DeFi), nonfungible tokens (NFTs), digital identity solutions, and the tokenizations of offchain, or as it’s commonly referred to, ‘‘real-world’’ assets. Some of the most important innovations that have come out of DeFi include ‘stablecoins,’ decentralized exchanges (DEXs), and automated lending protocols. Stablecoins maintain price parity with a target asset, such as the U.S. dollar. Decentralized exchanges (DEXs), such as Uniswap, allow users to trade assets without the need for an intermediary against an ‘‘automated market-maker’’ (AMM), settling trillions of dollars of value since their inception. As a final example, overcollateralized lending protocols like MakerDAO, Aave, or Compound have taken traditional credit VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 risk out of the equation, relying instead on smart contract automation and operators to liquidate loans when the collateralization ratio falls below a predetermined threshold. These and many other DeFi innovations reveal one of the core value propositions of Ethereum—the ability to act as a credibly neutral settlement layer where developers can automate away the need for centralized intermediaries. Much like bitcoin, access for U.S. retail investors to gain exposure to ether via a transparent and U.S. regulated, U.S. exchange-traded vehicle remains limited. Instead, current options include: (i) facing the counter-party risk, legal uncertainty, technical risk, and complexity associated with accessing spot ether; or (ii) over-the-counter ether funds (‘‘OTC Ether Funds’’) with high management fees and potentially volatile premiums and discounts. Meanwhile, investors in other countries are able to use more traditional exchange listed and traded products (including exchange-traded funds holding physical ETH) to gain exposure to ether. Similarly, investors across Europe have access to products which trade on regulated exchanges and provide exposure to a broad array of spot crypto assets. U.S. investors, by contrast, are left with fewer and more risky means of getting ether exposure. To this point, the lack of an ETP that holds spot ETH (a ‘‘Spot Ether ETP’’) exposes U.S. investor assets to significant risk because investors that would otherwise seek cryptoasset exposure through a Spot Ether ETP are forced to find alternative exposure through fewer and more risky means. For example, investors in OTC Ether Funds are not afforded the benefits and protections of regulated Spot Ether ETPs, resulting in retail investors suffering losses due to drastic movements in the premium/discount of OTC Ether Funds. Many retail investors likely suffered losses due to this premium/discount in OTC Ether Fund trading; all such losses could have been avoided if a Spot Ether ETP had been available. Additionally, many U.S. investors that held their digital assets in accounts at FTX,20 Celsius Network LLC,21 BlockFi Inc.22 and Voyager Digital Holdings, Inc.23 have become unsecured creditors in the insolvencies of those entities. If a Spot Ether ETP was available, it is likely that at least a 20 See FTX Trading Ltd., et al., Case No. 22– 11068. 21 See Celsius Network LLC, et al., Case No. 22– 10964. 22 See BlockFi Inc., Case No. 22–19361. 23 See Voyager Digital Holdings, Inc., et al., Case No. 22–10943. PO 00000 Frm 00159 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 portion of the billions of dollars tied up in those proceedings would still reside in the brokerage accounts of U.S. investors, having instead been invested in a transparent, regulated, and wellunderstood structure—a Spot Ether ETP. To this point, approval of a Spot Ether ETP would represent a major win for the protection of U.S. investors in the cryptoasset space. The Trust, like all other series of Commodity-Based Trust Shares, is designed to protect investors against the risk of losses through fraud and insolvency that arise by holding digital assets, including ether, on centralized platforms. Ether Futures ETFs The Exchange and Sponsor applaud the Commission for allowing the launch of ETFs registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the ‘‘1940 Act’’) that provide exposure to ether primarily through CME Ether Futures (‘‘Ether Futures ETFs’’). Allowing such products to list and trade is a productive first step in providing U.S. investors and traders with transparent, exchange-listed tools for expressing a view on ether. The structure of Ether Futures ETFs provides negative outcomes for buy and hold investors as compared to a Spot Ether ETP. Specifically, the cost of rolling CME Ether Futures contracts will cause the Ether Futures ETFs to lag the performance of ether itself and, at over a billion dollars in assets under management, would cost U.S. investors significant amounts of money on an annual basis compared to Spot Ether ETPs. Such rolling costs would not be required for Spot Ether ETPs that hold ether. Further, Ether Futures ETFs could potentially hit CME position limits, which would force an Ether Futures ETF to invest in non-futures assets for ether exposure and cause potential investor confusion and lack of certainty about what such Ether Futures ETFs are actually holding to try to get exposure to ether, not to mention completely changing the risk profile associated with such an ETF. While Ether Futures ETFs represent a useful trading tool, they are clearly a sub-optimal structure for U.S. investors that are looking for long-term exposure to ether that will unnecessarily cost U.S. investors significant amounts of money every year compared to Spot Ether ETPs and the Exchange believes that any proposal to list and trade a Spot Ether ETP should be reviewed by the Commission with this important investor protection context in mind. To the extent the Commission may view differential treatment of Ether Futures ETFs and Spot Ether ETPs as E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices warranted based on the Commission’s concerns about the custody of physical ether that a Spot Ether ETP would hold (compared to cash-settled futures contracts),24 the Sponsor believes this concern is mitigated to a significant degree by the custodial arrangements that the Trust has contracted with the Custodian (as discussed below) to provide, as further outlined below. In the Custody Statement, the Commission stated that the fourth step that a brokerdealer could take to shield traditional securities customers and others from the risks and consequences of digital asset security fraud, theft, or loss is to establish, maintain, and enforce reasonably designed written policies, procedures, and controls for safekeeping and demonstrating the broker-dealer has exclusive possession or control over digital asset securities that are consistent with industry best practices to protect against the theft, loss, and unauthorized and accidental use of the private keys necessary to access and transfer the digital asset securities the broker-dealer holds in custody. While ether is not a security and the Custodian is not a broker-dealer, the Sponsor believes that similar considerations apply to the Custodian’s holding of the Trust’s ether. After diligent investigation, the Sponsor believes that the Custodian’s policies, procedures, and controls for safekeeping, exclusively possessing, and controlling the Trust’s ether holdings are consistent with industry best practices to protect against the theft, loss, and unauthorized and accidental use of the private keys. As a trust company chartered by the New York Department of Financial Services (‘‘NYDFS’’), the Sponsor notes that the Custodian is subject to extensive regulation and has among longest track records in the industry of providing custodial services for digital asset private keys. Under the circumstances, therefore, to the extent the Commission believes that its concerns about the risks of spot ether custody justifies differential treatment lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 24 See, e.g., Division of Investment Management Staff, Staff Statement on Funds Registered Under the Investment Company Act Investing in the Bitcoin Futures Market, May 11, 2021 (‘‘The Bitcoin Futures market also has not presented the custody challenges associated with some cryptocurrencybased investing because the futures are cashsettled’’). VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 of a Ether Futures ETF versus a Spot Ether ETP, the Sponsor believes that the fact that the Custodian employs the same types of policies, procedures, and safeguards in handling spot ether that the Commission has stated that brokerdealers should implement with respect to digital asset securities would appear to weaken the justification for treating a Ether Futures ETF compared to a Spot Ether ETP differently due to spot ether custody concerns. Based on the foregoing, the Exchange and Sponsor believe that any objective review of the proposals to list Spot Ether ETPs compared to the Ether Futures ETFs would lead to the conclusion that Spot Ether ETPs should be available to U.S. investors and, as such, this proposal and other comparable proposals to list and trade Spot Ether ETPs should be approved by the Commission. Stated simply, U.S. investors would benefit immenselyfrom holding Spot Ether ETPs. Additionally, any concerns related to preventing fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices related to Spot Ether ETPs would apply equally to the spot markets underlying the futures contracts held by an Ether Futures ETF. Both the Exchange and Sponsor believe that the CME Ether Futures market is a regulated market of significant size and that such manipulation concerns are mitigated, as described extensively below. After allowing the listing and trading of Ether Futures ETFs that hold primarily CME Ether Futures, however, the only consistent outcome would be approving Spot Ether ETPs on the basis that the CME Ether Futures market is a regulated market of significant size. Given the current landscape, approving this proposal (and others like it) and allowing Spot Ether ETPs to be listed and traded alongside Ether Futures ETFs and Spot Bitcoin ETPs would establish a consistent regulatory approach, provide U.S. investors with choice in product structures for ether exposure, and offer flexibility in the means of gaining exposure to ether through transparent, regulated, U.S. exchange-listed vehicles. PO 00000 Frm 00160 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 46517 CME Ether Futures 25 CME began offering trading in ether futures (‘‘CME Ether Futures’’) in February 2021. Each contract represents 50 ether and is based on the CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate.26 The contracts trade and settle like other cash-settled commodity futures contracts. Most measurable metrics related to CME Ether Futures have generally trended up since launch, although some metrics have slowed recently. For example, there were 138,692 CME Ether Futures contracts traded in January 2024 (approximately $16.7 billion) compared to 99,496 ($14.6 billion) and 96,621 ($7.1 billion) contracts traded in January 2022, and January 2023 respectively.27 In addition, according to Sponsor’s research, trading volume for CME Ether Futures amounts to a total volume of $16,655,693,654 for January 2024, up from $6,123,830,768.67 for August 2023. This January 2024 trading volume represents 125,356 in open interest for CME Ether Futures, with an average value of $309,838,188.62, compared to 3,646.26 in open interest for CME Ether Futures, with an average value of $319,051,613.52 for August 2023. For January 2024, there were a total of 138,692 contracts for CME Ether Futures (equivalent to 6,934,600 ETH), compared to a total of 72,223 contracts for CME Ether Futures (equivalent to 3,611,150 ETH) in August 2023. Sponsor’s analyses further demonstrate that the correlation in pricing between CME Ether Futures and spot ETH is significantly correlated. Notably, the Sponsor performed a pairwise correlation of ether daily returns across top centralized spot cryptocurrency trading platforms and the CME from January 1, 2022 to February 1, 2024. The Sponsor’s research indicates that daily correlation between the spot ETH and the CME Ether Futures during this time period was over 99.89%. 25 Unless otherwise noted, all data and analysis presented in this section and referenced elsewhere in the filing has been provided by the Sponsor. 26 The CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate is based on a publicly available calculation methodology based on pricing sourced from several crypto exchanges and trading platforms, including Bitstamp, Coinbase, Gemini, itBit, Kraken, and LMAX Digital. 27 Source: CME, February 2024 E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 46518 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices BILLING CODE 8011–01–P Close Pffl:e evolution of Spot f:!Ttl 11$. CME f'utu- f:!Ttl 4" 12.0 I u ~.i--~-,.,-'llc-lllllll--·~"··~····-+···--····~..·"""'"~-1- lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 BILLING CODE 8011–01–C manipulative acts and practices; 30 and Section 6(b)(5) and the Applicable Standards The Commission has approved numerous series of Trust Issued Receipts,28 including Commodity-Based Trust Shares,29 to be listed on U.S. national securities exchanges. In order for any proposed rule change from an exchange to be approved, the Commission must determine that, among other things, the proposal is consistent with the requirements of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act, specifically including: (i) the requirement that a national securities exchange’s rules are designed to prevent fraudulent and 28 See Exchange Rule 14.11(f). Trust Shares, as described in Exchange Rule 14.11(e)(4), are a type of Trust Issued Receipt. 29 Commodity-Based VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 30 Much like bitcoin, the Exchange believes that ether is resistant to price manipulation and that ‘‘other means to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices’’ exist to justify dispensing with the requisite surveillance sharing agreement. The geographically diverse and continuous nature of ether trading render it difficult and prohibitively costly to manipulate the price of ETH. The fragmentation across ether platforms, the relatively slow speed of transactions, and the capital necessary to maintain a significant presence on each trading platform make manipulation of ether prices through continuous trading activity challenging. To the extent that there are ether trading platforms engaged in or allowing wash trading or other activity intended to manipulate the price of ether on other markets, such pricing does not normally impact prices on other trading platforms because participants will generally ignore markets with quotes that they deem non-executable. Moreover, the linkage between the ether markets and the presence of arbitrageurs in those markets means that the manipulation of the price of ether on any single venue would require manipulation of the global ether price in order to be effective. Arbitrageurs must have funds distributed across multiple trading platforms in order to take PO 00000 Frm 00161 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 (ii) the requirement that an exchange proposal be designed, in general, to protect investors and the public interest. The Exchange believes that this proposal is consistent with the requirements of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act and that this filing sufficiently demonstrates that the CME Ether Futures market represents a regulated market of significant size and that, on the whole, the manipulation concerns previously articulated by the Commission are sufficiently mitigated to the point that they are outweighed by quantifiable investor protection issues advantage of temporary price dislocations, thereby making it unlikely that there will be strong concentration of funds on any particular ether trading platforms or OTC platform. As a result, the potential for manipulation on a trading platform would require overcoming the liquidity supply of such arbitrageurs who are effectively eliminating any cross-market pricing differences. E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 EN29MY24.047</GPH> I Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices that would be resolved by approving this proposal. requisite surveillance-sharing agreement.33 (i) Designed To Prevent Fraudulent and Manipulative Acts and Practices (a) Manipulation of the ETP lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 In order to meet this standard in a proposal to list and trade a series of Commodity-Based Trust Shares, the Commission requires that an exchange demonstrate that there is a comprehensive surveillance-sharing agreement in place 31 with a regulated market of significant size. Both the Exchange and CME are members of the Intermarket Surveillance Group (‘‘ISG’’). The only remaining issue to be addressed is whether the CME Ether Futures market constitutes a market of significant size, which both the Exchange and the Sponsor believe that it does. The terms ‘‘significant market’’ and ‘‘market of significant size’’ include a market (or group of markets) as to which: (a) there is a reasonable likelihood that a person attempting to manipulate the ETP would also have to trade on that market to manipulate the ETP, so that a surveillance-sharing agreement would assist the listing exchange in detecting and deterring misconduct; and (b) it is unlikely that trading in the ETP would be the predominant influence on prices in that market.32 The Commission has also recognized that the ‘‘regulated market of significant size’’ standard is not the only means for satisfying Section 6(b)(5) of the act, specifically providing that a listing exchange could demonstrate that ‘‘other means to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices’’ are sufficient to justify dispensing with the 31 As previously articulated by the Commission, ‘‘The standard requires such surveillance-sharing agreements since ‘‘they provide a necessary deterrent to manipulation because they facilitate the availability of information needed to fully investigate a manipulation if it were to occur.’’ The Commission has emphasized that it is essential for an exchange listing a derivative securities product to enter into a surveillance- sharing agreement with markets trading underlying securities for the listing exchange to have the ability to obtain information necessary to detect, investigate, and deter fraud and market manipulation, as well as violations of exchange rules and applicable federal securities laws and rules. The hallmarks of a surveillancesharing agreement are that the agreement provides for the sharing of information about market trading activity, clearing activity, and customer identity; that the parties to the agreement have reasonable ability to obtain access to and produce requested information; and that no existing rules, laws, or practices would impede one party to the agreement from obtaining this information from, or producing it to, the other party.’’ The Commission has historically held that joint membership in the ISG constitutes such a surveillance sharing agreement. See Wilshire Phoenix Disapproval. 32 See Wilshire Phoenix Disapproval. VerDate Sep<11>2014 19:14 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 The significant market test requires that there is a reasonable likelihood that a person attempting to manipulate the ETP would also have to trade on that market to manipulate the ETP, so that a surveillance-sharing agreement would assist the listing exchange in detecting and deterring misconduct. In light of the similarly high correlation between spot ETH/CME Ether Futures and spot bitcoin/CME Bitcoin Futures, applying the same rationale that the Commission applied to a Spot Bitcoin ETP in the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order also indicates that this test is satisfied for this proposal. As noted above, in the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order, the SEC concluded that: . . . fraud or manipulation that impacts prices in spot bitcoin markets would likely similarly impact CME bitcoin futures prices. And because the CME’s surveillance can assist in detecting those impacts on CME bitcoin futures prices, the Exchanges’ comprehensive surveillance-sharing agreement with the CME . . . can be reasonably expected to assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices in the specific context of the [p]roposals.34 The assumptions from this statement are also true for CME Ether Futures. CME Ether Futures pricing is based on pricing from spot ether markets. The statement from the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order that the surveillancesharing agreement with the CME ‘‘can be reasonably expected to assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices in the specific context of the [p]roposals’’ makes clear that the Commission believes that CME’s surveillance can capture the effects of trading on the relevant spot markets on the pricing of CME Bitcoin Futures. This same logic would extend to CME Ether Futures markets where CME’s surveillance would be able to capture the effects of trading on the relevant spot markets on the pricing of CME Ether Futures. 33 See Winklevoss Order at 37580. The Commission has also specifically noted that it ‘‘is not applying a ‘cannot be manipulated’ standard; instead, the Commission is examining whether the proposal meets the requirements of the Exchange Act and, pursuant to its Rules of Practice, places the burden on the listing exchange to demonstrate the validity of its contentions and to establish that the requirements of the Exchange Act have been met.’’ Id. at 37582. 34 See the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order at 3011–3012. PO 00000 Frm 00162 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 46519 (b) Predominant Influence on Prices in Spot and Ether Futures The Exchange and Sponsor also believe that trading in the Shares would not be the predominant force on prices in the CME Ether Futures market for a number of reasons. First, because the Trust would not hold CME Ether Futures contracts, the only way that it could be the predominant force on prices in that market is through the spot markets that CME Ether Futures contracts use for pricing.35 The Sponsor notes that ether total 24-hour spot trading volume has averaged $15.82 billion over the year ending February 1, 2024.36 The Sponsor expects that the Trust would represent a very small percentage of this daily trading volume in the spot ether market even in its most aggressive projections for the Trust’s assets and, thus, the Trust would not have an impact on the spot market and therefore could not be the predominant force on prices in the CME Ether Futures market. Second, much like the CME Bitcoin Futures market, the CME Ether Futures market has progressed and matured significantly. As the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit found in its review of the Grayscale Order, ‘‘Because the spot market is deeper and more liquid than the futures market, manipulation should be more difficult, not less.’’ The Exchange and sponsor agree with this sentiment and believe it applies equally to the spot ether and CME Ether Futures markets. (c) Other Means To Prevent Fraudulent and Manipulative Acts and Practices As noted above, the Commission also permits a listing exchange to demonstrate that ‘‘other means to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices’’ are sufficient to justify dispensing with the requisite surveillance-sharing agreement. The Exchange and Sponsor believe that such conditions are present. The Exchange believes that the proposal is designed to protect investors and the public interest. Over the past several years, U.S. investor exposure to ether through OTC Ether Funds has grown into the tens of billions of dollars and more than a billion dollars of exposure through Ether Futures ETFs. 35 This logic is reflected by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on its review of the Grayscale Order at 17–18. See Grayscale Investments, LLC v. SEC, 82 F. 4th 1239 (D.C. Cir. 2023). Specifically, the court found that ‘‘Because Grayscale owns no futures contracts, trading in Grayscale can affect the futures market only through the spot market . . . But Grayscale holds just 3.4 percent of outstanding bitcoin, and the Commission did not suggest Grayscale can dominate the price of bitcoin.’’ 36 Source: CryptoCompare. E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 46520 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 With that growth, so too has grown the quantifiable investor protection issues to U.S. investors through roll costs for Ether Futures ETFs and premium/ discount volatility and management fees for OTC Ether Funds. The Exchange believes that the concerns related to the prevention of fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices have been sufficiently addressed to be consistent with the Act and, to the extent that the Commission disagrees with that assertion, also believes that such concerns are now outweighed by these investor protection concerns. As such, the Exchange believes that approving this proposal (and comparable proposals) provides the Commission with the opportunity to allow U.S. investors with access to ether in a regulated and transparent exchangetraded vehicle that would act to limit risk to U.S. investors by: (i) reducing premium and discount volatility; (ii) reducing management fees through meaningful competition; (iii) reducing risks and costs associated with investing in Ether Futures ETFs and operating companies that are imperfect proxies for ether exposure; and (iv) providing an alternative to custodying spot ether. ARK 21Shares Ethereum Trust Delaware Trust Company is the trustee (‘‘Trustee’’). The Bank of New York Mellon will be the administrator (‘‘Administrator’’) and transfer agent (‘‘Transfer Agent’’). Foreside Global Services, LLC will be the marketing agent (‘‘Marketing Agent’’) in connection with the creation and redemption of ‘‘Baskets’’ of Shares. ARK Investment Management LLC (the ‘‘Subadvisor’’) is the sub-adviser of the Trust and will provide data, research, and as needed, operational support to the Trust including with respect to assistance in the marketing of the Shares. As noted above, Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC, a thirdparty regulated custodian (the ‘‘Custodian’’), will be responsible for custody of the Trust’s ether. The Bank of New York Mellon (the ‘‘Cash Custodian’’) will act as custodian of the Trust’s cash and cash equivalents. According to the Registration Statement, each Share will represent a fractional undivided beneficial interest in the Trust. The Trust’s assets will only consist of ether, cash, or cash and cash equivalents.37 According to the Registration Statement, the Trust will be neither an investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended,38 nor a commodity pool for purposes of the Commodity Exchange Act (‘‘CEA’’), and neither the Trust nor the Sponsor is subject to regulation as a commodity pool operator or a commodity trading adviser in connection with the Shares. Neither the Trust, nor the Sponsor, nor the Custodian, nor any other person associated with the Trust will, directly or indirectly, engage in action where any portion of the Trust’s ETH becomes subject to the Ethereum proof-of-stake validation or is used to earn additional ETH or generate income or other earnings. The Trust will not acquire and will disclaim any incidental right (‘‘IR’’) or IR asset received, for example as a result of forks or airdrops, and such assets will not be taken into account for purposes of determining NAV. When the Trust creates or redeems its Shares, it will do so in cash transactions in blocks of 10,000 Shares (a ‘‘Creation Basket’’) at the Trust’s net asset value (‘‘NAV’’). Authorized participants will deliver, or facilitate the delivery of, cash to the Trust’s account with the Cash Custodian in exchange for Shares when they create Shares, and the Trust, through the Cash Custodian, will deliver cash to such authorized participants when they redeem Shares with the Trust. Authorized participants may then offer Shares to the public at prices that depend on various factors, including the supply and demand for Shares, the value of the Trust’s assets, and market conditions at the time of a transaction. As noted above, the Trust is designed to protect investors against the risk of losses through fraud and insolvency that arise by holding ether on centralized platforms. Specifically, the Trust is designed to protect investors as follows: (i) Assets of the Trust Protected From Insolvency The Trust’s ether will be held by its Custodian,39 which is a New York chartered trust company overseen by the NYDFS and a qualified custodian under Rule 206–4 of the Investment Adviser Act. The Custodian will custody the Trust’s ether pursuant to a custody agreement, which requires the Custodian to maintain the Trust’s ether in segregated accounts that clearly identify the Trust as owner of the accounts and assets held on those accounts; the segregation will be both from the proprietary property of the Custodian and the assets of any other customer. Such an arrangement is U.S.C. 80a–1. to the Registration Statement, the Trust’s cash will be held at The Bank of New York Mellon pursuant to a cash custody agreement. equivalents are short-term instruments with maturities of less than 3 months. VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 (ii) Trust’s Transfer Agent Will Instruct Disposition of Trust’s Ether According to the Registration Statement, except with respect to sale of ether from time to time to cover expenses of the Trust, the only time ether will move into or out from the Trust will be with respect to creations or redemptions of Shares of the Trust. In such cases, a third party will use cash to buy and deliver ether to create Shares or withdraw and sell ether for cash to redeem Shares, on behalf of the Trust. Authorized participants will deliver cash to the Trust’s account with the Cash Custodian in exchange for Shares of the Trust, and the Trust, through the Cash Custodian, will deliver cash to authorized participants when those authorized participants redeem Shares of the Trust. The Transfer Agent will facilitate the settlement of Shares in response to the placement of creation orders and redemption orders from authorized participants. The creation and redemption procedures are administered by the Transfer Agent, an independent third party. Specifically, Shares are issued in registered form in accordance with the Trust agreement.40 The Transfer Agent has been appointed registrar and transfer agent for the purpose of transferring Shares in certificated form. The Transfer Agent keeps a record of all holders of the Shares in certified form in the registry. The Sponsor recognizes transfers of Shares in certified form only if done in accordance with the Trust agreement. In other words, according to the Registration Statement, with very limited exceptions, the Sponsor will not give instructions with respect to the transfer or disposition of the Trust’s ether. Ether owned by the Trust will at all times be held by, and in the control 38 15 39 According 37 Cash generally deemed to be ‘‘bankruptcy remote,’’ that is, in the event of an insolvency of the Custodian, assets held in such segregated accounts would not become property of the Custodian’s estate and would not be available to satisfy claims of creditors of the Custodian. In addition, according to the Registration Statement, the Custodian carries fidelity insurance, which covers assets held by the Custodian in custody from risks such as theft of funds. These arrangements provide significant protections to investors and could have mitigated the type of losses incurred by investors in the numerous cryptorelated insolvencies, including Celsius, Voyager, BlockFi and FTX. PO 00000 Frm 00163 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 40 The Trust agreement refers to the ‘‘Amended and Restated Trust Agreement of Ark 21Shares Ethereum ETF.’’ E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices of, the Custodian, and transfer of such ether to or from the Custodian will occur only in connection with creation and redemptions of Shares. This will provide safeguards against the movement of ether owned by the Trust by or to the Sponsor or affiliates of the Sponsor. (iii) Trust’s Assets Are Subject to Regular Audit According to the Registration Statement, audit trails exist for all movement of ether within Custodiancontrolled ether wallets and are audited annually for accuracy and completeness by an independent external audit firm. In addition, the Trust will be audited by an independent registered public accounting firm on a regular basis. (iv) Trust Is Subject to the Exchange’s Obligations of Companies Listed on the Exchange and Applicable Corporate Governance Requirements The Trust will be subject to the obligations of companies listed on the Exchange set forth in BZX Rule 14.6, which require the listed companies to make public disclosure of material events and any notifications of deficiency by the Exchange, file and distribute period financial reports, engage independent public accountants registered with the Exchange, among other things. Such disclosures serve a key investor protection role. In addition, the Trust will be subject to the corporate governance requirements for companies listed on the Exchange set forth in BZX Rule 14.10. lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 Investment Objective According to the Registration Statement and as further described below, the investment objective of the Trust will be to seek to track the performance of ether, as measured by the performance of the CME CF EtherDollar Reference Rate—New York Variant (the ‘‘Index’’), adjusted for the Trust’s expenses and other liabilities. In seeking to achieve its investment objective, the Trust will hold ether and will value the Shares daily based on the Index. The Trust will process all creations and redemptions in cash transactions with authorized participants. The Trust is not actively managed. The Index The Trust will use the Index to calculate the Trust’s NAV. The Trust will determine the ether Index price and value its Shares daily based on the value of ether as reflected by the Index. The Index is calculated daily and aggregates the notional value of ether trading VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 across major ether spot trading platforms. The Index currently uses substantially the same methodology as the CME CF Ether Dollar Reference Rate (‘‘ERR’’), including utilizing the same six ether trading platforms, which is the underlying rate to determine settlement of CME Ether Futures contracts, except that the Index is calculated as of 4:00 p.m. ET, whereas the ERR is calculated as of 4:00 p.m. London time. The administrator of the Index is CF Benchmarks Ltd. (the ‘‘Index Provider’’). The Index, which was introduced on November 14, 2016, is based on materially the same methodology (except calculation time) as the Index Provider’s ERR, which was first introduced on May 14, 2018, and is the rate on which CME Ether Futures contracts are cash-settled in U.S. dollars at the CME. The Index is designed based on the IOSCO Principals for Financial Benchmarks. The administrator of the Index is the Index Provider. The Index is calculated daily and aggregates the notional value of ether trading activity across major ether spot trading platforms. The Sponsor believes that the use of the Index is reflective of a reasonable valuation of the average spot price of ether and that resistance to manipulation is a priority aim of its design methodology. The methodology: (i) takes an observation period and divides it into equal partitions of time; (ii) then calculates the volume-weighted median of all transactions within each partition; and (iii) the value is determined from the arithmetic mean of the volume-weighted medians, equally weighted. By employing the foregoing steps, the Index thereby seeks to ensure that transactions in ether conducted at outlying prices do not have an undue effect on the value of a specific partition, large trades or clusters of trades transacted over a short period of time will not have an undue influence on the Index level, and the effect of large trades at prices that deviate from the prevailing price are mitigated from having an undue influence on the Index level. In addition, the Sponsor notes that an oversight function is implemented by the Index Provider in seeking to ensure that the Index is administered through codified policies for Index integrity. The Trust will determine the value of its Shares daily based on the value of ether as reflected by the Index. The Index is calculated daily and aggregates the notional value of ether trading activity across major ether spot trading platforms. The Index is designed based on the IOSCO Principals for Financial Benchmarks. The Trust also uses the PO 00000 Frm 00164 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 46521 ether price determined by the Index to calculate its ‘‘Ether Holdings,’’ which is the aggregate U.S. Dollar value of ether in the Trust, based on the ether price determined by the Index, less its liabilities and expenses. ‘‘Ether Holdings per Share’’ is calculated by dividing Ether Holdings by the number of Shares currently outstanding. Ether Holdings and Ether Holdings per Share are not measures calculated in accordance with GAAP. Ether Holdings is not intended to be a substitute for the Trust’s NAV calculated in accordance with GAAP, and Ether Holdings per Share is not intended to be a substitute for the Trust’s NAV per Share calculated in accordance with GAAP. The Index was created to facilitate financial products based on ether. It serves as a once-a-day benchmark rate of the U.S. dollar price of ether (USD/ ETH), calculated as of 4:00 p.m. ET. The Index aggregates the trade flow of several ether trading platforms, during an observation window between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. ET into the U.S. dollar price of one ether at 4:00 p.m. ET. Specifically, the Index is calculated based on the ‘‘Relevant Transactions’’ (as defined below) of all of its constituent ether trading platforms, which are currently Coinbase, Bitstamp, Kraken, itBit, LMAX Digital and Gemini (the ‘‘Constituent Platforms’’), as follows: • All Relevant Transactions are added to a joint list, recording the time of execution, trade price and size for each transaction. • The list is partitioned by timestamp into 12 equally sized time intervals of five-minute length. • For each partition separately, the volume-weighted median trade price is calculated from the trade prices and sizes of all Relevant Transactions, i.e., across all Constituent Platforms. A volume-weighted median differs from a standard median in that a weighting factor, in this case trade size, is factored into the calculation. • The Index is then determined by the equally weighted average of the volume medians of all partitions. The Index does not include any futures prices in its methodology. A ‘‘Relevant Transaction’’ is any cryptocurrency versus U.S. dollar spot trade that occurs during the observation window between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. Eastern time on a Constituent Platform in the ETH/USD pair that is reported and disseminated by a Constituent Platform through its publicly available API and observed by the Index Provider. An oversight function is implemented by the Index Provider in seeking to ensure that the E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 46522 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices Index is administered through the Index Provider’s codified policies for Index integrity. Index data and the description of the Index are based on information made publicly available by the Index Provider on its website at https://www.cfbench marks.com. Net Asset Value NAV means the total assets of the Trust (which includes all ether and cash and cash equivalents) less total liabilities of the Trust. The Administrator determines the NAV of the Trust on each day that the Exchange is open for regular trading, as promptly as practical after 4:00 p.m. ET. The NAV of the Trust is the aggregate value of the Trust’s assets less its estimated accrued but unpaid liabilities (which include accrued expenses). In determining the Trust’s NAV, the Administrator values the ether held by the Trust based on the price set by the Index as of 4:00 p.m. ET. The Administrator also determines the NAV per Share. The NAV for the Trust will be calculated by the Administrator once a day and will be disseminated daily to all market participants at the same time. If the Index is not available, or if the Sponsor determines in good faith that the Index does not reflect an accurate ether price, then the Administrator will employ an alternative method to determine the fair value of the Trust’s assets.41 lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 Availability of Information In addition to the price transparency of the Index, the Trust will provide information regarding the Trust’s ether holdings as well as additional data regarding the Trust. The website for the Trust, which will be publicly accessible at no charge, will contain the following information: (a) the current NAV per Share daily and the prior business day’s NAV per Share and the reported BZX Official Closing Price; 42 (b) the BZX Official Closing Price in relation to the NAV per Share as of the time the NAV is calculated and a calculation of the premium or discount of such price against such NAV per Share; (c) data in chart form displaying the frequency distribution of discounts and premiums of the BZX Official Closing Price against the NAV per Share, within appropriate ranges for each of the four previous 41 Such alternative method will only be employed on an ad hoc basis. Any permanent change to the calculation of the NAV would require a proposed rule change under Rule 19b–4. 42 As defined in Rule 11.23(a)(3), the term ‘‘BZX Official Closing Price’’ shall mean the price disseminated to the consolidated tape as the market center closing trade. VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 calendar quarters (or for the life of the Trust, if shorter); (d) the prospectus; and (e) other applicable quantitative information. The aforementioned information will be published as of the close of business and available on the Sponsor’s website at www.21shares.com, or any successor thereto. The Intraday Indicative Value (‘‘IIV’’) will be calculated by using the prior day’s closing NAV per Share as a base and updating that value during Regular Trading Hours to reflect changes in the value of the Trust’s ether during the trading day. The IIV disseminated during Regular Trading Hours should not be viewed as an actual real-time update of the NAV, which will be calculated only once at the end of each trading day. The IIV may differ from the NAV due to the differences in the time window of trades used to calculate each price (the NAV uses the Index price as of 4 p.m. ET, whereas the IIV draws prices from the last trade on each Constituent Platform 43 in an effort to produce a relevant, real-time price). The Trust will provide an IIV per Share updated every 15 seconds, as calculated by the Exchange or a third-party financial data provider during the Exchange’s Regular Trading Hours (9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. E.T.). The IIV will be widely disseminated on a per Share basis every 15 seconds during the Exchange’s Regular Trading Hours through the facilities of the consolidated tape association (CTA) and Consolidated Quotation System (CQS) high speed lines. In addition, the IIV will be available through on-line information services. The price of ether will be made available by one or more major market data vendors, updated at least every 15 seconds during Regular Trading Hours. As noted above, the Index is calculated daily and aggregates the notional value of ether trading activity across major ether spot trading platforms. Index data, value, and the description of the Index are based on information made publicly available by the Index Provider on its website at https://www.cfbenchmarks.com. Quotation and last sale information for ether is widely disseminated through a variety of major market data vendors, including Bloomberg and Reuters. Information relating to trading, including price and volume information, in ether is available from major market data vendors and from the trading platforms on which ether are traded. Depth of book information is 43 The Constituent Platforms are the same platforms used to calculate the Index. PO 00000 Frm 00165 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 also available from ether trading platforms. The normal trading hours for ether trading platforms are 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. Information regarding market price and trading volume of the Shares will be continually available on a real-time basis throughout the day on brokers’ computer screens and other electronic services. Information regarding the previous day’s BZX Official Closing Price and trading volume information for the Shares will be published daily in the financial section of newspapers. Quotation and last-sale information regarding the Shares will be disseminated through the facilities of the CTA. The Ether Custodian The Custodian carefully considers the design of the physical, operational, and cryptographic systems for secure storage of the Trust’s private keys in an effort to lower the risk of loss or theft. The Custodian utilizes a variety of security measures to ensure that private keys necessary to transfer digital assets remain uncompromised and that the Trust maintains exclusive ownership of its assets. The operational procedures of the Custodian are reviewed by thirdparty advisors with specific expertise in physical security. The devices that store the keys will never be connected to the internet or any other public or private distributed network—this is colloquially known as ‘‘cold storage.’’ Only specific individuals are authorized to participate in the custody process, and no individual acting alone will be able to access or use any of the private keys. In addition, no combination of the executive officers of the Sponsor or the investment professionals managing the Trust, acting alone or together, will be able to access or use any of the private keys that hold the Trust’s ether. Creation and Redemption of Shares When the Trust creates or redeems its Shares, it will do so in cash transactions in blocks of 10,000 Shares that are based on the quantity of ether attributable to each Share of the Trust (e.g., a Creation Basket) at the Trust’s NAV. The authorized participants will deliver only cash to create Shares and will receive only cash when redeeming Shares. Further, authorized participants will not directly or indirectly purchase, hold, deliver, or receive ether as part of the creation or redemption process or otherwise direct the Trust or a third party with respect to purchasing, holding, delivering, or receiving ether as part of the creation or redemption process. The Trust will create Shares by receiving ether from a third party that is E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 not the authorized participant and the Trust—not the authorized participant— is responsible for selecting the third party to deliver the ether. Further, the third party will not be acting as an agent of the authorized participant with respect to the delivery of the ether to the Trust or acting at the direction of the authorized participant with respect to the delivery of the ether to the Trust. The Trust will redeem shares by delivering ether to a third party that is not the authorized participant and the Trust—not the authorized participant— is responsible for selecting the third party to receive the ether. Further, the third party will not be acting as an agent of the authorized participant with respect to the receipt of the ether from the Trust or acting at the direction of the authorized participant with respect to the receipt of the ether from the Trust. According to the Registration Statement, on any business day, an authorized participant may place an order to create one or more Creation Baskets. Purchase orders must be placed by 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time, the close of regular trading on the Exchange, or another time determined by the Sponsor. The day on which an order is received is considered the purchase order date. The total deposit of cash required is based on the combined NAV of the number of Shares included in the Creation Baskets being created determined as of 4:00 p.m. ET on the date the order to purchase is properly received. The Administrator determines the quantity of ether associated with a Creation Basket for a given day by dividing the number of ether held by the Trust as of the opening of business on that business day, adjusted for the amount of ether constituting estimated accrued but unpaid fees and expenses of the Trust as of the opening of business on that business day, by the quotient of the number of Shares outstanding at the opening of business divided by the number of Shares in a Creation Basket. The procedures by which an authorized participant can redeem one or more Creation Baskets mirror the procedures for the creation of Creation Baskets. The Sponsor will maintain ownership and control of ether in a manner consistent with good delivery requirements for spot commodity transactions. Rule 14.11(e)(4)—Commodity-Based Trust Shares The Shares will be subject to BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4), which sets forth the initial and continued listing criteria applicable to Commodity-Based Trust Shares. The Exchange represents that, VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 for initial and continued listing, the Trust must be in compliance with Rule 10A–3 under the Act. A minimum of 10,000 Shares will be outstanding at the commencement of listing on the Exchange. The Exchange will obtain a representation that the NAV will be calculated daily and information about the NAV and the assets of the Trust will be made available to all market participants at the same time. The Exchange notes that, as defined in Rule 14.11(e)(4)(C)(i), the Shares will be: (a) issued by a trust that holds (1) a specified commodity 44 deposited with the trust, or (2) a specified commodity and, in addition to such specified commodity, cash; (b) issued by such trust in a specified aggregate minimum number in return for a deposit of a quantity of the underlying commodity and/or cash; and (c) when aggregated in the same specified minimum number, may be redeemed at a holder’s request by such trust which will deliver to the redeeming holder the quantity of the underlying commodity and/or cash. Upon termination of the Trust, the Shares will be removed from listing. The Trustee, Delaware Trust Company, is a trust company having substantial capital and surplus and the experience and facilities for handling corporate trust business, as required under Rule 14.11(e)(4)(E)(iv)(a) and that no change will be made to the trustee without prior notice to and approval of the Exchange. The Exchange also notes that, pursuant to Rule 14.11(e)(4)(F), neither the Exchange nor any agent of the Exchange shall have any liability for damages, claims, losses or expenses caused by any errors, omissions or delays in calculating or disseminating any underlying commodity value, the current value of the underlying commodity required to be deposited to the Trust in connection with issuance of Commodity-Based Trust Shares; resulting from any negligent act or omission by the Exchange, or any agent of the Exchange, or any act, condition or cause beyond the reasonable control of the Exchange, its agent, including, but not limited to, an act of God; fire; flood; extraordinary weather conditions; war; insurrection; riot; strike; accident; action of government; communications or power failure; equipment or software malfunction; or any error, omission or delay in the reports of transactions in an underlying commodity. Finally, as required in Rule 14.11(e)(4)(G), the Exchange notes that any registered market maker (‘‘Market Maker’’) in the 44 For purposes of Rule 14.11(e)(4), the term commodity takes on the definition of the term as provided in the Commodity Exchange Act. PO 00000 Frm 00166 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 46523 Shares must file with the Exchange in a manner prescribed by the Exchange and keep current a list identifying all accounts for trading in an underlying commodity, related commodity futures or options on commodity futures, or any other related commodity derivatives, which the registered Market Maker may have or over which it may exercise investment discretion. No registered Market Maker shall trade in an underlying commodity, related commodity futures or options on commodity futures, or any other related commodity derivatives, in an account in which a registered Market Maker, directly or indirectly, controls trading activities, or has a direct interest in the profits or losses thereof, which has not been reported to the Exchange as required by this Rule. In addition to the existing obligations under Exchange rules regarding the production of books and records (see, e.g., Rule 4.2), the registered Market Maker in CommodityBased Trust Shares shall make available to the Exchange such books, records or other information pertaining to transactions by such entity or registered or non-registered employee affiliated with such entity for its or their own accounts for trading the underlying physical commodity, related commodity futures or options on commodity futures, or any other related commodity derivatives, as may be requested by the Exchange. The Exchange is able to obtain information regarding trading in the Shares and the underlying ether, CME Ether Futures, options on CME Ether Futures, or any other ether derivative through members acting as registered Market Makers, in connection with their proprietary or customer trades. As a general matter, the Exchange has regulatory jurisdiction over its Members and their associated persons, which include any person or entity controlling a Member. To the extent the Exchange may be found to lack jurisdiction over a subsidiary or affiliate of a Member that does business only in commodities or futures contracts, the Exchange could obtain information regarding the activities of such subsidiary or affiliate through surveillance sharing agreements with regulatory organizations of which such subsidiary or affiliate is a member. Trading Halts With respect to trading halts, the Exchange may consider all relevant factors in exercising its discretion to halt or suspend trading in the Shares. The Exchange will halt trading in the Shares under the conditions specified in BZX Rule 11.18. Trading may be halted because of market conditions or for E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 46524 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in the Shares inadvisable. These may include: (1) the extent to which trading is not occurring in the ether underlying the Shares; or (2) whether other unusual conditions or circumstances detrimental to the maintenance of a fair and orderly market are present. Trading in the Shares also will be subject to Rule 14.11(e)(4)(E)(ii), which sets forth circumstances under which trading in the Shares may be halted. If the IIV or the value of the Index is not being disseminated as required, the Exchange may halt trading during the day in which the interruption to the dissemination of the IIV or the value of the Index occurs. If the interruption to the dissemination of the IIV or the value of the Index persists past the trading day in which it occurred, the Exchange will halt trading no later than the beginning of the trading day following the interruption. In addition, if the Exchange becomes aware that the NAV with respect to the Shares is not disseminated to all market participants at the same time, it will halt trading in the Shares until such time as the NAV is available to all market participants. lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 Trading Rules The Exchange deems the Shares to be equity securities, thus rendering trading in the Shares subject to the Exchange’s existing rules governing the trading of equity securities. BZX will allow trading in the Shares during all trading sessions on the Exchange. The Exchange has appropriate rules to facilitate transactions in the Shares during all trading sessions. As provided in BZX Rule 11.11(a) the minimum price variation for quoting and entry of orders in securities traded on the Exchange is $0.01 where the price is greater than $1.00 per share or $0.0001 where the price is less than $1.00 per share. The Shares of the Trust will conform to the initial and continued listing criteria set forth in BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4). Surveillance The Exchange represents that its surveillance procedures are adequate to properly monitor the trading of the Shares on the Exchange during all trading sessions and to deter and detect violations of Exchange rules and the applicable federal securities laws. Trading of the Shares through the Exchange will be subject to the Exchange’s surveillance procedures for derivative products, including Commodity-Based Trust Shares. FINRA conducts certain cross-market surveillances on behalf of the Exchange VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 pursuant to a regulatory services agreement. The Exchange is responsible for FINRA’s performance under this regulatory services agreement. The Exchange or FINRA, on behalf of the Exchange, or both, will communicate as needed regarding trading in the Shares, CME Ether Futures, or any other ether derivative with other markets and other entities that are members of the ISG, and the Exchange, or FINRA, on behalf of the Exchange, or both, may obtain trading information regarding trading in the Shares, CME Ether Futures, or any other ether derivative from such markets and other entities.45 The Exchange may obtain information regarding trading in the Shares, CME Ether Futures, or any other ether derivative via ISG, from other exchanges who are members or affiliates of the ISG, or with which the Exchange has entered into a comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement. In addition, the Exchange also has a general policy prohibiting the distribution of material, non-public information by its employees. The Sponsor has represented to the Exchange that it will advise the Exchange of any failure by the Trust or the Shares to comply with the continued listing requirements, and, pursuant to its obligations under Section 19(g)(1) of the Exchange Act, the Exchange will surveil for compliance with the continued listing requirements. If the Trust or the Shares are not in compliance with the applicable listing requirements, the Exchange will commence delisting procedures under Exchange Rule 14.12. Information Circular Prior to the commencement of trading, the Exchange will inform its members in an Information Circular of the special characteristics and risks associated with trading the Shares. Specifically, the Information Circular will discuss the following: (i) the procedures for the creation and redemption of Creation Baskets (and that the Shares are not individually redeemable); (ii) BZX Rule 3.7, which imposes suitability obligations on Exchange members with respect to recommending transactions in the Shares to customers; (iii) how information regarding the IIV and the Trust’s NAV are disseminated; (iv) the risks involved in trading the Shares outside of Regular Trading Hours 46 45 For a list of the current members and affiliate members of ISG, see www.isgportal.com. 46 Regular Trading Hours is the time between 9:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. PO 00000 Frm 00167 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 when an updated IIV will not be calculated or publicly disseminated; (v) the requirement that members deliver a prospectus to investors purchasing newly issued Shares prior to or concurrently with the confirmation of a transaction; and (vi) trading information. The Information Circular will also reference the fact that there is no regulated source of last sale information regarding ether, that the Commission has no jurisdiction over the trading of ether as a commodity, and that the CFTC has regulatory jurisdiction over the trading of CME Ether Futures and options on CME Ether Futures. In addition, the Information Circular will advise members, prior to the commencement of trading, of the prospectus delivery requirements applicable to the Shares. Members purchasing the Shares for resale to investors will deliver a prospectus to such investors. The Information Circular will also discuss any exemptive, noaction and interpretive relief granted by the Commission from any rules under the Act. 2. Statutory Basis The Exchange believes that the proposal is consistent with Section 6(b) of the Act 47 in general and Section 6(b)(5) of the Act 48 in particular in that it is designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices, to promote just and equitable principles of trade, to foster cooperation and coordination with persons engaged in facilitating transactions in securities, to remove impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a free and open market and a national market system and, in general, to protect investors and the public interest. The Commission has approved numerous series of Trust Issued Receipts,49 including Commodity-Based Trust Shares,50 to be listed on U.S. national securities exchanges. In order for any proposed rule change from an exchange to be approved, the Commission must determine that, among other things, the proposal is consistent with the requirements of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act, specifically including: (i) the requirement that a national securities exchange’s rules are designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices; 51 and 47 15 U.S.C. 78f. U.S.C. 78f(b)(5). 49 See Exchange Rule 14.11(f). 50 Commodity-Based Trust Shares, as described in Exchange Rule 14.11(e)(4), are a type of Trust Issued Receipt. 51 Much like bitcoin, the Exchange believes that ether is resistant to price manipulation and that 48 15 E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices (ii) the requirement that an exchange proposal be designed, in general, to protect investors and the public interest. The Exchange believes that this proposal is consistent with the requirements of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act and that this filing sufficiently demonstrates that the CME Ether Futures market represents a regulated market of significant size and that, on the whole, the manipulation concerns previously articulated by the Commission are sufficiently mitigated to the point that they are outweighed by quantifiable investor protection issues that would be resolved by approving this proposal. lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 (i) Designed To Prevent Fraudulent and Manipulative Acts and Practices In order to meet this standard in a proposal to list and trade a series of Commodity-Based Trust Shares, the Commission requires that an exchange demonstrate that there is a comprehensive surveillance-sharing agreement in place 52 with a regulated ‘‘other means to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices’’ exist to justify dispensing with the requisite surveillance sharing agreement. The geographically diverse and continuous nature of ether trading render it difficult and prohibitively costly to manipulate the price of ETH. The fragmentation across ether platforms, the relatively slow speed of transactions, and the capital necessary to maintain a significant presence on each trading platform make manipulation of ether prices through continuous trading activity challenging. To the extent that there are ether trading platforms engaged in or allowing wash trading or other activity intended to manipulate the price of ether on other markets, such pricing does not normally impact prices on other trading platforms because participants will generally ignore markets with quotes that they deem non-executable. Moreover, the linkage between the ether markets and the presence of arbitrageurs in those markets means that the manipulation of the price of ether price on any single venue would require manipulation of the global ether price in order to be effective. Arbitrageurs must have funds distributed across multiple trading platforms in order to take advantage of temporary price dislocations, thereby making it unlikely that there will be strong concentration of funds on any particular ether trading platform or OTC platforms. As a result, the potential for manipulation on a trading platform would require overcoming the liquidity supply of such arbitrageurs who are effectively eliminating any cross-market pricing differences. 52 As previously articulated by the Commission, ‘‘The standard requires such surveillance-sharing agreements since ‘‘they provide a necessary deterrent to manipulation because they facilitate the availability of information needed to fully investigate a manipulation if it were to occur.’’ The Commission has emphasized that it is essential for an exchange listing a derivative securities product to enter into a surveillance-sharing agreement with markets trading underlying securities for the listing exchange to have the ability to obtain information necessary to detect, investigate, and deter fraud and market manipulation, as well as violations of exchange rules and applicable federal securities laws and rules. The hallmarks of a surveillancesharing agreement are that the agreement provides for the sharing of information about market trading VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 market of significant size. Both the Exchange and CME are members of ISG. The only remaining issue to be addressed is whether the CME Ether Futures market constitutes a market of significant size, which both the Exchange and the Sponsor believe that it does. The terms ‘‘significant market’’ and ‘‘market of significant size’’ include a market (or group of markets) as to which: (a) there is a reasonable likelihood that a person attempting to manipulate the ETP would also have to trade on that market to manipulate the ETP, so that a surveillance-sharing agreement would assist the listing exchange in detecting and deterring misconduct; and (b) it is unlikely that trading in the ETP would be the predominant influence on prices in that market.53 The Commission has also recognized that the ‘‘regulated market of significant size’’ standard is not the only means for satisfying Section 6(b)(5) of the act, specifically providing that a listing exchange could demonstrate that ‘‘other means to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices’’ are sufficient to justify dispensing with the requisite surveillance-sharing agreement.54 55 (a) Manipulation of the ETP The significant market test requires that there is a reasonable likelihood that a person attempting to manipulate the ETP would also have to trade on that market to manipulate the ETP, so that a surveillance-sharing agreement would assist the listing exchange in detecting activity, clearing activity, and customer identity; that the parties to the agreement have reasonable ability to obtain access to and produce requested information; and that no existing rules, laws, or practices would impede one party to the agreement from obtaining this information from, or producing it to, the other party.’’ The Commission has historically held that joint membership in the ISG constitutes such a surveillance sharing agreement. See Wilshire Phoenix Disapproval. 53 See Wilshire Phoenix Disapproval. 54 See Winklevoss Order at 37580. The Commission has also specifically noted that it ‘‘is not applying a ‘cannot be manipulated’ standard; instead, the Commission is examining whether the proposal meets the requirements of the Exchange Act and, pursuant to its Rules of Practice, places the burden on the listing exchange to demonstrate the validity of its contentions and to establish that the requirements of the Exchange Act have been met.’’ Id. at 37582. 55 According to reports, the Commission is poised to allow the launch of ETFs registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the ‘‘1940 Act’’), that provide exposure to ether primarily through CME Ether Futures (‘‘ETH Futures ETFs’’) as early as October 2023. Allowing such products to list and trade is a productive first step in providing U.S. investors and traders with transparent, exchange-listed tools for expressing a view on ETH. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/ articles/2023-08-17/sec-said-to-be-poised-to-allowus-debut-of-ether-futures-etfs-eth#xj4y7vzkg. PO 00000 Frm 00168 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 46525 and deterring misconduct. In light of the similarly high correlation between spot ETH/CME Ether Futures and spot bitcoin/CME Bitcoin Futures, applying the same rationale that the Commission applied to the Bitcoin Futures ETF and in the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order also indicates that this test is satisfied for this proposal. As noted above, in the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order, the SEC concluded that: . . . fraud or manipulation that impacts prices in spot bitcoin markets would likely similarly impact CME bitcoin futures prices. And because the CME’s surveillance can assist in detecting those impacts on CME bitcoin futures prices, the Exchanges’ comprehensive surveillance-sharing agreement with the CME . . . can be reasonably expected to assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices in the specific context of the [p]roposals.56 The assumptions from this statement are also true for CME Ether Futures. CME Ether Futures pricing is based on pricing from spot ether markets. The statement from the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order that the surveillancesharing agreement with the CME ‘‘can be reasonably expected to assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices in the specific context of the [p]roposals’’ makes clear that the Commission believes that CME’s surveillance can capture the effects of trading on the relevant spot markets on the pricing of CME Bitcoin Futures. This same logic would extend to CME Ether Futures markets where CME’s surveillance would be able to capture the effects of trading on the relevant spot markets on the pricing of CME Ether Futures. (b) Predominant Influence on Prices in Spot and Ether Futures The Exchange and Sponsor also believe that trading in the Shares would not be the predominant force on prices in the CME Ether Futures market or spot market for a number of reasons, including the significant volume in the CME Ether Futures market, the size of ether’s market cap, and the significant liquidity available in the spot market. In addition to the CME Ether Futures market data points cited above, the spot market for ether is also very liquid. (c) Other Means To Prevent Fraudulent and Manipulative Acts and Practices As noted above, the Commission also permits a listing exchange to demonstrate that ‘‘other means to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices’’ are sufficient to 56 See the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order at 3011–3012. E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 46526 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 justify dispensing with the requisite surveillance-sharing agreement. The Exchange and Sponsor believe that such conditions are present. The Exchange believes that the proposal is designed to protect investors and the public interest. Over the past several years, U.S. investor exposure to ether through OTC Ether Funds has grown into the tens of billions of dollars and more than a billion dollars of exposure through Ether Futures ETFs. With that growth, so too has grown the quantifiable investor protection issues to U.S. investors through roll costs for Ether Futures ETFs and premium/ discount volatility and management fees for OTC Ether Funds. The Exchange believes that the concerns related to the prevention of fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices have been sufficiently addressed to be consistent with the Act and, to the extent that the Commission disagrees with that assertion, also believes that such concerns are now outweighed by these investor protection concerns. As such, the Exchange believes that approving this proposal (and comparable proposals) provides the Commission with the opportunity to allow U.S. investors with access to ether in a regulated and transparent exchangetraded vehicle that would act to limit risk to U.S. investors by: (i) reducing premium and discount volatility; (ii) reducing management fees through meaningful competition; (iii) reducing risks and costs associated with investing in Ether Futures ETFs and operating companies that are imperfect proxies for ether exposure; and (iv) providing an alternative to custodying spot ether. Commodity-Based Trust Shares The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices in that the Shares will be listed on the Exchange pursuant to the initial and continued listing criteria in Exchange Rule 14.11(e)(4). The Exchange believes that its surveillance procedures are adequate to properly monitor the trading of the Shares on the Exchange during all trading sessions and to deter and detect violations of Exchange rules and the applicable federal securities laws. Trading of the Shares through the Exchange will be subject to the Exchange’s surveillance procedures for derivative products, including Commodity-Based Trust Shares. The issuer has represented to the Exchange that it will advise the Exchange of any failure by the Trust or the Shares to comply with the continued listing requirements, and, pursuant to its obligations under VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Jkt 262001 Section 19(g)(1) of the Exchange Act, the Exchange will surveil for compliance with the continued listing requirements. If the Trust or the Shares are not in compliance with the applicable listing requirements, the Exchange will commence delisting procedures under Exchange Rule 14.12. The Exchange may obtain information regarding trading in the Shares and listed ether derivatives via the ISG, from other exchanges who are members or affiliates of the ISG, or with which the Exchange has entered into a comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement. Availability of Information In addition to the price transparency of the Index, the Trust will provide information regarding the Trust’s ether holdings as well as additional data regarding the Trust. The website for the Trust, which will be publicly accessible at no charge, will contain the following information: (a) the current NAV per Share daily and the prior business day’s NAV per Share and the reported BZX Official Closing Price; (b) the BZX Official Closing Price in relation to the NAV per Share as of the time the NAV is calculated and a calculation of the premium or discount of such price against such NAV per Share; (c) data in chart form displaying the frequency distribution of discounts and premiums of the BZX Official Closing Price against the NAV per Share, within appropriate ranges for each of the four previous calendar quarters (or for the life of the Trust, if shorter); (d) the prospectus; and (e) other applicable quantitative information. The aforementioned information will be published as of the close of business and available on the Sponsor’s website at www.21shares.com, or any successor thereto. The IIV will be calculated by using the prior day’s closing NAV per Share as a base and updating that value during Regular Trading Hours to reflect changes in the value of the Trust’s ether during the trading day. The IIV disseminated during Regular Trading Hours should not be viewed as an actual real-time update of the NAV, which will be calculated only once at the end of each trading day. The IIV may differ from the NAV due to the differences in the time window of trades used to calculate each price (the NAV uses the Index price as of 4 p.m. ET, whereas the IIV draws prices from the last trade on each Constituent Platform in an effort to produce a relevant, real-time price). The Trust will provide an IIV per Share updated every 15 seconds, as calculated by the Exchange or a third-party financial data provider during the PO 00000 Frm 00169 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 Exchange’s Regular Trading Hours (9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. E.T.). The IIV will be widely disseminated on a per Share basis every 15 seconds during the Exchange’s Regular Trading Hours through the facilities of the CTA and CQS high speed lines. In addition, the IIV will be available through on-line information services. The price of ether will be made available by one or more major market data vendors, updated at least every 15 seconds during Regular Trading Hours. As noted above, the Index is calculated daily and aggregates the notional value of ether trading activity across major ether spot trading platforms. Index data, value, and the description of the Index are based on information made publicly available by the Index Provider on its website at https://www.cfbenchmarks.com. Quotation and last sale information for ether is widely disseminated through a variety of major market data vendors, including Bloomberg and Reuters. Information relating to trading, including price and volume information, in ether is available from major market data vendors and from the trading platforms on which ether are traded. Depth of book information is also available from ether trading platforms. The normal trading hours for ether trading platforms are 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. Information regarding market price and trading volume of the Shares will be continually available on a real-time basis throughout the day on brokers’ computer screens and other electronic services. Information regarding the previous day’s BZX Official Closing Price and trading volume information for the Shares will be published daily in the financial section of newspapers. Quotation and last-sale information regarding the Shares will be disseminated through the facilities of the CTA. In sum, the Exchange believes that this proposal is consistent with the requirements of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act, that this filing sufficiently demonstrates that the CME Ether Futures market represents a regulated market of significant size, and that on the whole the manipulation concerns previously articulated by the Commission are sufficiently mitigated to the point that they are outweighed by investor protection issues that would be resolved by approving this proposal. The Exchange believes that the proposal is, in particular, designed to protect investors and the public interest. The investor protection issues for U.S. investors has grown significantly over the last several years, through roll costs E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 2024 / Notices for ether Futures ETFs and premium/ discount volatility and management fees for OTC Ether Funds. As discussed throughout, this growth investor protection concerns need to be reevaluated and rebalanced with the prevention of fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices concerns that previous disapproval orders have relied upon. Finally, the Exchange notes that in addition to all of the arguments herein which it believes sufficiently establish the CME Ether Futures market as a regulated market of significant size, it is logically inconsistent to find that the CME Ether Futures market is a significant market as it relates to the CME Ether Futures market, but not a significant market as it relates to the ether spot market for the numerous reasons laid out above. For the above reasons, the Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with the requirements of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act. B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement on Burden on Competition The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will impose any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the purpose of the Act. The Exchange notes that the proposed rule change, rather will facilitate the listing and trading of an additional exchange-traded product that will enhance competition among both market participants and listing venues, to the benefit of investors and the marketplace. C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s Statement on Comments on the Proposed Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others The Exchange has neither solicited nor received written comments on the proposed rule change. III. Solicitation of Comments Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views and arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods: Commission, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549–1090. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION All submissions should refer to file number SR–CboeBZX–2023–070. This file number should be included on the subject line if email is used. To help the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently, please use only one method. The Commission will post all comments on the Commission’s internet website (https://www.sec.gov/ rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that are filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating to the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person, other than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for website viewing and printing in the Commission’s Public Reference Room, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549, on official business days between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of the filing also will be available for inspection and copying at the principal office of the Exchange. Do not include personal identifiable information in submissions; you should submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. We may redact in part or withhold entirely from publication submitted material that is obscene or subject to copyright protection. All submissions should refer to file number SR–CboeBZX–2023–070 and should be submitted on or before June 20, 2024. [Release No. 34–100220; File No. SR–NYSE– 2024–18] For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated authority.57 J. Matthew DeLesDernier, Deputy Secretary. [FR Doc. 2024–11708 Filed 5–28–24; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 8011–01–P lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 Electronic Comments • Use the Commission’s internet comment form (https://www.sec.gov/ rules/sro.shtml); or • Send an email to rule-comments@ sec.gov. Please include file number SR– CboeBZX–2023–070 on the subject line. VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:05 May 28, 2024 Self-Regulatory Organizations; New York Stock Exchange LLC; Notice of Designation of a Longer Period for Commission Action on Proposed Rule Change To Amend Section 102.06 of the NYSE Listed Company Manual To Provide That a Special Purpose Acquisition Company Can Remain Listed Until Forty-Two Months From Its Original Listing Date if It Has Entered Into a Definitive Agreement With Respect to a Business Combination Within Three Years of Listing May 22, 2024. On March 27, 2024, The New York Stock Exchange LLC (‘‘NYSE’’ or the ‘‘Exchange’’) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (‘‘Commission’’), pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (‘‘Act’’) 1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2 a proposed rule change to amend Section 102.06 of the NYSE Listed Company Manual (‘‘Manual’’) to provide that a special purpose acquisition company (‘‘SPAC’’) can remain listed until forty-two months from its original listing date if it has entered into a definitive agreement with respect to a business combination within three years of listing. The proposed rule change was published for comment in the Federal Register on April 10, 2024.3 The Commission has received no comments on the proposal. Section 19(b)(2) of the Act 4 provides that within 45 days of the publication of notice of the filing of a proposed rule change, or within such longer period up to 90 days as the Commission may designate if it finds such longer period to be appropriate and publishes its reasons for so finding or as to which the self-regulatory organization consents, the Commission shall either approve the proposed rule change, disapprove the proposed rule change, or institute proceedings to determine whether the proposed rule change should be disapproved. The 45th day after publication of the notice for this proposed rule change is May 25, 2024. The Commission is extending this 45day time period. The Commission finds it appropriate to designate a longer period within which to take action on the proposed 1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). CFR 240.19b–4. 3 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 99906 (April 4, 2024), 89 FR 25291. 4 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2). 2 17 Paper Comments • Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities and Exchange Jkt 262001 46527 57 17 PO 00000 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). Frm 00170 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\29MYN1.SGM 29MYN1

Agencies

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 104 (Wednesday, May 29, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46514-46527]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-11708]

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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-100216; File No. SR-CboeBZX-2023-070]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc.; Notice of
Filing of Amendment No. 2 to a Proposed Rule Change To List and Trade
Shares of the ARK 21Shares Ethereum ETF Under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4),
Commodity-Based Trust Shares

May 22, 2024.
On September 6, 2023, Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc. (``BZX'' or
``Exchange'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(``Commission''), pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 (``Act'') \1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ a
proposed rule change to list and trade shares (``Shares'') of the ARK
21Shares Ethereum ETF (``Trust'') under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4),
Commodity-Based Trust Shares. The proposed rule change was published
for comment in the Federal Register on September 27, 2023.\3\ On
September 27, 2023, pursuant to Section 19(b)(2) of the Act,\4\ the
Commission designated a longer period within which to approve the
proposed rule change, disapprove the proposed rule change, or institute
proceedings to determine whether to disapprove the proposed rule
change.\5\ On December 18, 2023, the Commission instituted proceedings
under Section 19(b)(2)(B) of the Act \6\ to determine whether to
approve or disapprove the proposed rule change.\7\ On February 14,
2024, the Exchange filed Amendment No. 1, which replaced and superseded
the proposed rule change in its entirety. On March 19, 2024, the
Commission provided notice of Amendment No. 1 to the proposed rule
change and designated a longer period for Commission action on the
proposed rule change, as modified by Amendment No. 1.\8\ On May 21,
2024, the Exchange filed Amendment No. 2 to the proposed rule change as
described in Items I and II below, which Items have been prepared by
the Exchange. Amendment No. 2 amended and replaced the proposed rule
change, as modified by Amendment No. 1, in its entirety. The Commission
is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the proposed rule
change, as modified by Amendment No. 2, from interested persons.
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\1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
\2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
\3\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 98467 (Sept. 21,
2023), 88 FR 66515 (``Notice''). Comments on the proposed rule
change are available at: https://www.sec.gov/comments/sr-cboebzx-2023-070/srcboebzx2023070.htm.
\4\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2).
\5\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 98565, 88 FR 68187
(Oct. 3, 2023).
\6\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B).
\7\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 99196, 88 FR 88685
(Dec. 22, 2023).
\8\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 99772, 89 FR 20721
(Mar. 25, 2024).
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change

Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc. (``BZX'' or the ``Exchange'') is filing
with the Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'' or ``SEC'')
a proposed rule change to list and trade shares of the ARK 21Shares
Ethereum ETF (the ``Trust''),\9\ under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4), Commodity-
Based Trust Shares.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\9\ The Trust was formed as a Delaware statutory trust on
September 5, 2023, and is operated as a grantor trust for U.S.
federal tax purposes. The Trust has no fixed termination date.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The text of the proposed rule change is also available on the
Exchange's website (https://markets.cboe.com/us/equities/regulation/rule_filings/bzx/), at the Exchange's Office of the Secretary, and at
the Commission's Public Reference Room.

[[Page 46515]]

II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

In its filing with the Commission, the Exchange included statements
concerning the purpose of and basis for the proposed rule change and
discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule change. The
text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in
Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared summaries, set forth in
sections A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such
statements.

A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

1. Purpose
This Amendment No. 2 to SR-CboeBZX-2023-070 amends and replaces in
its entirety the proposal as originally submitted on September 6, 2023
and as amended by Amendment No. 1 on February 14, 2024. The Exchange
submits this Amendment No. 2 in order to clarify certain points and add
additional details to the proposal.
The Exchange proposes to list and trade the Shares under BZX Rule
14.11(e)(4),\10\ which governs the listing and trading of Commodity-
Based Trust Shares on the Exchange.\11\ 21Shares US LLC is the sponsor
of the Trust (the ``Sponsor''). The Shares will be registered with the
Commission by means of the Trust's registration statement on Form S-1
(the ``Registration Statement'').\12\ According to the Registration
Statement, the Trust is neither an investment company registered under
the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended,\13\ nor a commodity
pool for purposes of the Commodity Exchange Act (``CEA''), and neither
the Trust nor the Sponsor is subject to regulation as a commodity pool
operator or a commodity trading adviser in connection with the Shares.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\10\ The Commission approved BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4) in Securities
Exchange Act Release No. 65225 (August 30, 2011), 76 FR 55148
(September 6, 2011) (SR-BATS-2011-018).
\11\ Any of the statements or representations regarding the
index composition, the description of the portfolio or reference
assets, limitations on portfolio holdings or reference assets,
dissemination and availability of index, reference asset, and
intraday indicative values, or the applicability of Exchange listing
rules specified in this filing to list a series of Other Securities
(collectively, ``Continued Listing Representations'') shall
constitute continued listing requirements for the Shares listed on
the Exchange.
\12\ See the Registration Statement on Form S-1, dated September
6, 2023, submitted by the Sponsor on behalf of the Trust. The
descriptions of the Trust, the Shares, and the Index (as defined
below) contained herein are based, in part, on information in the
Registration Statement. The Registration Statement is not yet
effective, and the Shares will not trade on the Exchange until such
time that the Registration Statement is effective.
\13\ 15 U.S.C. 80a-1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Commission has historically approved or disapproved exchange
filings to list and trade series of Trust Issued Receipts, including
spot-based Commodity-Based Trust Shares, on the basis of whether the
listing exchange has in place a comprehensive surveillance sharing
agreement with a regulated market of significant size related to the
underlying commodity to be held.\14\ With this in mind, the Chicago
Mercantile Exchange (``CME'') ether futures (``Ether Futures'') market,
which launched in February 2021, is the proper market to consider in
determining whether there is a related regulated market of significant
size.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\14\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 78262 (July 8,
2016), 81 FR 78262 (July 14. 2016) (the ``Winklevoss Proposal'').
The Winklevoss Proposal was subsequently disapproved by the
Commission. See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 83723 (July 26,
2018), 83 FR 37579 (August 1, 2018) (the ``Winklevoss Order'').
Prior orders from the Commission have pointed out that in every
prior approval order for Commodity-Based Trust Shares, there has
been a derivatives market that represents the regulated market of
significant size, generally a Commodity Futures Trading Commission
(the ``CFTC'') regulated futures market. Further to this point, the
Commission's prior orders have noted that the spot commodities and
currency markets for which it has previously approved spot ETPs are
generally unregulated and that the Commission relied on the
underlying futures market as the regulated market of significant
size that formed the basis for approving the series of Currency and
Commodity-Based Trust Shares, including gold, silver, platinum,
palladium, copper, and other commodities and currencies. The
Commission specifically noted in the Winklevoss Order that the
approval order issued related to the first spot gold ETP ``was based
on an assumption that the currency market and the spot gold market
were largely unregulated.'' See Winklevoss Order at 37592. As such,
the regulated market of significant size test does not require that
the spot ether market be regulated in order for the Commission to
approve this proposal, and precedent makes clear that an underlying
market for a spot commodity or currency being a regulated market
would actually be an exception to the norm. These largely
unregulated currency and commodity markets do not provide the same
protections as the markets that are subject to the Commission's
oversight, but the Commission has consistently looked to
surveillance sharing agreements with the underlying futures market
in order to determine whether such products were consistent with the
Act.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recently, the Commission issued an order granting approval for
proposals to list bitcoin-based commodity trust and bitcoin-based trust
issued receipts (these proposed funds are nearly identical to the
Trust, but proposed to hold bitcoin instead of ether) (``Spot Bitcoin
ETPs'').\15\ By way of background, in 2022 the Commission disapproved
proposals \16\ to list Spot Bitcoin ETPs, including a proposal
sponsored by Grayscale Investments, LLC (``Grayscale'').\17\ Grayscale
appealed the decision with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C.
Circuit, which held that the Commission had failed to adequately
explain its reasoning that the proposing exchange had not established
that the CME bitcoin futures market was a market of significant size
related to spot bitcoin, or that the ``other means'' asserted were
sufficient to satisfy the statutory standard. As a result, the court
vacated the Grayscale Order and remanded the matter to the
Commission.\18\ In considering the remand of the Grayscale Order and
the Spot Bitcoin ETPs, the Commission determined in the Spot Bitcoin
ETP Approval Order that the CME bitcoin futures (``Bitcoin Futures'')
market is highly correlated to spot bitcoin. Specifically, the
Commission stated:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\15\ See Exchange Act Release No. 99306 (January 10, 2024), 89
FR 3008 (January 17, 2024) (Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE
Arca, Inc.; The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC; Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc.;
Order Granting Accelerated Approval of Proposed Rule Changes, as
Modified by Amendments Thereto, To List and Trade Bitcoin-Based
Commodity-Based Trust Shares and Trust Units) (the ``Spot Bitcoin
ETP Approval Order'').
\16\ See Order Disapproving a Proposed Rule Change To List and
Trade Shares of the VanEck Bitcoin Trust Under BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4),
Commodity-Based Trust Shares, Securities Exchange Act Release No.
97102 (Mar. 10, 2023), 88 FR 16055 (Mar. 15, 2023) (SR-CboeBZX-2022-
035) (``VanEck Order II'') and n.11 therein for the complete list of
previous proposals.
\17\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 95180 (June 29,
2022) 87 FR 40299 (July 6, 2022) (SR-NYSEArca-2021-90) (Order
Disapproving a Proposed Rule Change, as Modified by Amendment No. 1,
to List and Trade Shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust Under NYSE Arca
Rule 8.201-E (Commodity-Based Trust Shares) (the ``Grayscale
Order'').
\18\ See Grayscale Investments, LLC v. SEC, 82 F.4th 1239 (D.C.
Cir. 2023).

[B]ased on the record before the Commission and the improved
quality of the correlation analysis in the record. . .the Commission
is able to conclude that fraud or manipulation that impacts prices
in spot bitcoin markets would likely similarly impact CME bitcoin
futures prices. And because the CME's surveillance can assist in
detecting those impacts on CME bitcoin futures prices, the
Exchanges' comprehensive surveillance-sharing agreement with the
CME-a U.S. regulated market whose bitcoin futures market is
consistently highly correlated to spot bitcoin, albeit not of
``significant size'' related to spot bitcoin-can be reasonably
expected to assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative
acts and practices in the specific context of the [p]roposals.\19\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\19\ See the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order at 3011-3012.

As further discussed below, both the Exchange and the Sponsor
believe that this proposal and the included analysis are sufficient to
establish that the CME Ether Futures market represents a regulated
market of significant size as it

[[Page 46516]]

relates to the CME Ether Futures market and that this proposal should
be approved.
Background
Ethereum is a decentralized smart contract platform that
revolutionized the world of blockchain technology beyond its initial
use case of peer-to-peer payments. It introduced the idea of ``smart
contracts,'' self-executing agreements with predefined rules, enabling
developers and entrepreneurs worldwide to code and deploy decentralized
applications on top of the Ethereum network. ``Ether'' or ``ETH'', the
native crypto asset of the network, is the fuel that allows Ethereum to
operate in the same way that we use oil to propel vehicles, heat
buildings, and produce electricity in the physical world. Users must
pay a ``gas fee'' or a transaction tax in ether for every transaction
they perform on the network. The term ``gas'' refers to the unit that
measures the computational effort required to execute specific
operations on the Ethereum blockchain. Thus, ether is analogous to a
digital commodity powering the Ethereum network. For instance, an
entire virtual economy has emerged with ether as the unit of account
and medium of exchange. This phenomenon is similar to the spontaneous
adoption of commodities like coffee and, most notably, precious metals
like gold as money by various civilizations throughout history, except
this time, in a digital-native realm.
With more than 5,946 monthly active developers as of June 2023,
Ethereum is the world's largest developer ecosystem. Moreover, the
platform is explored and experimented with by various private banks and
central banks globally. Since its launch in 2015, Ethereum has driven
the evolution of the blockchain space with innovations, ranging from
decentralized finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), digital
identity solutions, and the tokenizations of off-chain, or as it's
commonly referred to, ``real-world'' assets. Some of the most important
innovations that have come out of DeFi include `stablecoins,'
decentralized exchanges (DEXs), and automated lending protocols.
Stablecoins maintain price parity with a target asset, such as the U.S.
dollar. Decentralized exchanges (DEXs), such as Uniswap, allow users to
trade assets without the need for an intermediary against an
``automated market-maker'' (AMM), settling trillions of dollars of
value since their inception. As a final example, overcollateralized
lending protocols like MakerDAO, Aave, or Compound have taken
traditional credit risk out of the equation, relying instead on smart
contract automation and operators to liquidate loans when the
collateralization ratio falls below a predetermined threshold. These
and many other DeFi innovations reveal one of the core value
propositions of Ethereum--the ability to act as a credibly neutral
settlement layer where developers can automate away the need for
centralized intermediaries.
Much like bitcoin, access for U.S. retail investors to gain
exposure to ether via a transparent and U.S. regulated, U.S. exchange-
traded vehicle remains limited. Instead, current options include: (i)
facing the counter-party risk, legal uncertainty, technical risk, and
complexity associated with accessing spot ether; or (ii) over-the-
counter ether funds (``OTC Ether Funds'') with high management fees and
potentially volatile premiums and discounts. Meanwhile, investors in
other countries are able to use more traditional exchange listed and
traded products (including exchange-traded funds holding physical ETH)
to gain exposure to ether. Similarly, investors across Europe have
access to products which trade on regulated exchanges and provide
exposure to a broad array of spot crypto assets. U.S. investors, by
contrast, are left with fewer and more risky means of getting ether
exposure.
To this point, the lack of an ETP that holds spot ETH (a ``Spot
Ether ETP'') exposes U.S. investor assets to significant risk because
investors that would otherwise seek cryptoasset exposure through a Spot
Ether ETP are forced to find alternative exposure through fewer and
more risky means. For example, investors in OTC Ether Funds are not
afforded the benefits and protections of regulated Spot Ether ETPs,
resulting in retail investors suffering losses due to drastic movements
in the premium/discount of OTC Ether Funds. Many retail investors
likely suffered losses due to this premium/discount in OTC Ether Fund
trading; all such losses could have been avoided if a Spot Ether ETP
had been available. Additionally, many U.S. investors that held their
digital assets in accounts at FTX,\20\ Celsius Network LLC,\21\ BlockFi
Inc.\22\ and Voyager Digital Holdings, Inc.\23\ have become unsecured
creditors in the insolvencies of those entities. If a Spot Ether ETP
was available, it is likely that at least a portion of the billions of
dollars tied up in those proceedings would still reside in the
brokerage accounts of U.S. investors, having instead been invested in a
transparent, regulated, and well-understood structure--a Spot Ether
ETP. To this point, approval of a Spot Ether ETP would represent a
major win for the protection of U.S. investors in the cryptoasset
space. The Trust, like all other series of Commodity-Based Trust
Shares, is designed to protect investors against the risk of losses
through fraud and insolvency that arise by holding digital assets,
including ether, on centralized platforms.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\20\ See FTX Trading Ltd., et al., Case No. 22-11068.
\21\ See Celsius Network LLC, et al., Case No. 22-10964.
\22\ See BlockFi Inc., Case No. 22-19361.
\23\ See Voyager Digital Holdings, Inc., et al., Case No. 22-
10943.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ether Futures ETFs
The Exchange and Sponsor applaud the Commission for allowing the
launch of ETFs registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as
amended (the ``1940 Act'') that provide exposure to ether primarily
through CME Ether Futures (``Ether Futures ETFs''). Allowing such
products to list and trade is a productive first step in providing U.S.
investors and traders with transparent, exchange-listed tools for
expressing a view on ether.
The structure of Ether Futures ETFs provides negative outcomes for
buy and hold investors as compared to a Spot Ether ETP. Specifically,
the cost of rolling CME Ether Futures contracts will cause the Ether
Futures ETFs to lag the performance of ether itself and, at over a
billion dollars in assets under management, would cost U.S. investors
significant amounts of money on an annual basis compared to Spot Ether
ETPs. Such rolling costs would not be required for Spot Ether ETPs that
hold ether. Further, Ether Futures ETFs could potentially hit CME
position limits, which would force an Ether Futures ETF to invest in
non-futures assets for ether exposure and cause potential investor
confusion and lack of certainty about what such Ether Futures ETFs are
actually holding to try to get exposure to ether, not to mention
completely changing the risk profile associated with such an ETF. While
Ether Futures ETFs represent a useful trading tool, they are clearly a
sub-optimal structure for U.S. investors that are looking for long-term
exposure to ether that will unnecessarily cost U.S. investors
significant amounts of money every year compared to Spot Ether ETPs and
the Exchange believes that any proposal to list and trade a Spot Ether
ETP should be reviewed by the Commission with this important investor
protection context in mind.
To the extent the Commission may view differential treatment of
Ether Futures ETFs and Spot Ether ETPs as

[[Page 46517]]

warranted based on the Commission's concerns about the custody of
physical ether that a Spot Ether ETP would hold (compared to cash-
settled futures contracts),\24\ the Sponsor believes this concern is
mitigated to a significant degree by the custodial arrangements that
the Trust has contracted with the Custodian (as discussed below) to
provide, as further outlined below. In the Custody Statement, the
Commission stated that the fourth step that a broker-dealer could take
to shield traditional securities customers and others from the risks
and consequences of digital asset security fraud, theft, or loss is to
establish, maintain, and enforce reasonably designed written policies,
procedures, and controls for safekeeping and demonstrating the broker-
dealer has exclusive possession or control over digital asset
securities that are consistent with industry best practices to protect
against the theft, loss, and unauthorized and accidental use of the
private keys necessary to access and transfer the digital asset
securities the broker-dealer holds in custody. While ether is not a
security and the Custodian is not a broker-dealer, the Sponsor believes
that similar considerations apply to the Custodian's holding of the
Trust's ether. After diligent investigation, the Sponsor believes that
the Custodian's policies, procedures, and controls for safekeeping,
exclusively possessing, and controlling the Trust's ether holdings are
consistent with industry best practices to protect against the theft,
loss, and unauthorized and accidental use of the private keys. As a
trust company chartered by the New York Department of Financial
Services (``NYDFS''), the Sponsor notes that the Custodian is subject
to extensive regulation and has among longest track records in the
industry of providing custodial services for digital asset private
keys. Under the circumstances, therefore, to the extent the Commission
believes that its concerns about the risks of spot ether custody
justifies differential treatment of a Ether Futures ETF versus a Spot
Ether ETP, the Sponsor believes that the fact that the Custodian
employs the same types of policies, procedures, and safeguards in
handling spot ether that the Commission has stated that broker-dealers
should implement with respect to digital asset securities would appear
to weaken the justification for treating a Ether Futures ETF compared
to a Spot Ether ETP differently due to spot ether custody concerns.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\24\ See, e.g., Division of Investment Management Staff, Staff
Statement on Funds Registered Under the Investment Company Act
Investing in the Bitcoin Futures Market, May 11, 2021 (``The Bitcoin
Futures market also has not presented the custody challenges
associated with some cryptocurrency-based investing because the
futures are cash-settled'').
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Based on the foregoing, the Exchange and Sponsor believe that any
objective review of the proposals to list Spot Ether ETPs compared to
the Ether Futures ETFs would lead to the conclusion that Spot Ether
ETPs should be available to U.S. investors and, as such, this proposal
and other comparable proposals to list and trade Spot Ether ETPs should
be approved by the Commission. Stated simply, U.S. investors would
benefit immenselyfrom holding Spot Ether ETPs. Additionally, any
concerns related to preventing fraudulent and manipulative acts and
practices related to Spot Ether ETPs would apply equally to the spot
markets underlying the futures contracts held by an Ether Futures ETF.
Both the Exchange and Sponsor believe that the CME Ether Futures market
is a regulated market of significant size and that such manipulation
concerns are mitigated, as described extensively below. After allowing
the listing and trading of Ether Futures ETFs that hold primarily CME
Ether Futures, however, the only consistent outcome would be approving
Spot Ether ETPs on the basis that the CME Ether Futures market is a
regulated market of significant size.
Given the current landscape, approving this proposal (and others
like it) and allowing Spot Ether ETPs to be listed and traded alongside
Ether Futures ETFs and Spot Bitcoin ETPs would establish a consistent
regulatory approach, provide U.S. investors with choice in product
structures for ether exposure, and offer flexibility in the means of
gaining exposure to ether through transparent, regulated, U.S.
exchange-listed vehicles.
CME Ether Futures ²⁵
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\25\ Unless otherwise noted, all data and analysis presented in
this section and referenced elsewhere in the filing has been
provided by the Sponsor.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

CME began offering trading in ether futures (``CME Ether Futures'')
in February 2021. Each contract represents 50 ether and is based on the
CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate.\26\ The contracts trade and settle
like other cash-settled commodity futures contracts. Most measurable
metrics related to CME Ether Futures have generally trended up since
launch, although some metrics have slowed recently. For example, there
were 138,692 CME Ether Futures contracts traded in January 2024
(approximately $16.7 billion) compared to 99,496 ($14.6 billion) and
96,621 ($7.1 billion) contracts traded in January 2022, and January
2023 respectively.\27\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\26\ The CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate is based on a
publicly available calculation methodology based on pricing sourced
from several crypto exchanges and trading platforms, including
Bitstamp, Coinbase, Gemini, itBit, Kraken, and LMAX Digital.
\27\ Source: CME, February 2024
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

In addition, according to Sponsor's research, trading volume for
CME Ether Futures amounts to a total volume of $16,655,693,654 for
January 2024, up from $6,123,830,768.67 for August 2023. This January
2024 trading volume represents 125,356 in open interest for CME Ether
Futures, with an average value of $309,838,188.62, compared to 3,646.26
in open interest for CME Ether Futures, with an average value of
$319,051,613.52 for August 2023. For January 2024, there were a total
of 138,692 contracts for CME Ether Futures (equivalent to 6,934,600
ETH), compared to a total of 72,223 contracts for CME Ether Futures
(equivalent to 3,611,150 ETH) in August 2023.
Sponsor's analyses further demonstrate that the correlation in
pricing between CME Ether Futures and spot ETH is significantly
correlated. Notably, the Sponsor performed a pairwise correlation of
ether daily returns across top centralized spot cryptocurrency trading
platforms and the CME from January 1, 2022 to February 1, 2024. The
Sponsor's research indicates that daily correlation between the spot
ETH and the CME Ether Futures during this time period was over 99.89%.

[[Page 46518]]

BILLING CODE 8011-01-P
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN29MY24.047

BILLING CODE 8011-01-C
Section 6(b)(5) and the Applicable Standards
The Commission has approved numerous series of Trust Issued
Receipts,\28\ including Commodity-Based Trust Shares,\29\ to be listed
on U.S. national securities exchanges. In order for any proposed rule
change from an exchange to be approved, the Commission must determine
that, among other things, the proposal is consistent with the
requirements of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act, specifically including: (i)
the requirement that a national securities exchange's rules are
designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices;
\30\ and (ii) the requirement that an exchange proposal be designed, in
general, to protect investors and the public interest. The Exchange
believes that this proposal is consistent with the requirements of
Section 6(b)(5) of the Act and that this filing sufficiently
demonstrates that the CME Ether Futures market represents a regulated
market of significant size and that, on the whole, the manipulation
concerns previously articulated by the Commission are sufficiently
mitigated to the point that they are outweighed by quantifiable
investor protection issues

[[Page 46519]]

that would be resolved by approving this proposal.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\28\ See Exchange Rule 14.11(f).
\29\ Commodity-Based Trust Shares, as described in Exchange Rule
14.11(e)(4), are a type of Trust Issued Receipt.
\30\ Much like bitcoin, the Exchange believes that ether is
resistant to price manipulation and that ``other means to prevent
fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices'' exist to justify
dispensing with the requisite surveillance sharing agreement. The
geographically diverse and continuous nature of ether trading render
it difficult and prohibitively costly to manipulate the price of
ETH. The fragmentation across ether platforms, the relatively slow
speed of transactions, and the capital necessary to maintain a
significant presence on each trading platform make manipulation of
ether prices through continuous trading activity challenging. To the
extent that there are ether trading platforms engaged in or allowing
wash trading or other activity intended to manipulate the price of
ether on other markets, such pricing does not normally impact prices
on other trading platforms because participants will generally
ignore markets with quotes that they deem non-executable. Moreover,
the linkage between the ether markets and the presence of
arbitrageurs in those markets means that the manipulation of the
price of ether on any single venue would require manipulation of the
global ether price in order to be effective. Arbitrageurs must have
funds distributed across multiple trading platforms in order to take
advantage of temporary price dislocations, thereby making it
unlikely that there will be strong concentration of funds on any
particular ether trading platforms or OTC platform. As a result, the
potential for manipulation on a trading platform would require
overcoming the liquidity supply of such arbitrageurs who are
effectively eliminating any cross-market pricing differences.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

(i) Designed To Prevent Fraudulent and Manipulative Acts and Practices
In order to meet this standard in a proposal to list and trade a
series of Commodity-Based Trust Shares, the Commission requires that an
exchange demonstrate that there is a comprehensive surveillance-sharing
agreement in place \31\ with a regulated market of significant size.
Both the Exchange and CME are members of the Intermarket Surveillance
Group (``ISG''). The only remaining issue to be addressed is whether
the CME Ether Futures market constitutes a market of significant size,
which both the Exchange and the Sponsor believe that it does. The terms
``significant market'' and ``market of significant size'' include a
market (or group of markets) as to which: (a) there is a reasonable
likelihood that a person attempting to manipulate the ETP would also
have to trade on that market to manipulate the ETP, so that a
surveillance-sharing agreement would assist the listing exchange in
detecting and deterring misconduct; and (b) it is unlikely that trading
in the ETP would be the predominant influence on prices in that
market.\32\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\31\ As previously articulated by the Commission, ``The standard
requires such surveillance-sharing agreements since ``they provide a
necessary deterrent to manipulation because they facilitate the
availability of information needed to fully investigate a
manipulation if it were to occur.'' The Commission has emphasized
that it is essential for an exchange listing a derivative securities
product to enter into a surveillance- sharing agreement with markets
trading underlying securities for the listing exchange to have the
ability to obtain information necessary to detect, investigate, and
deter fraud and market manipulation, as well as violations of
exchange rules and applicable federal securities laws and rules. The
hallmarks of a surveillance-sharing agreement are that the agreement
provides for the sharing of information about market trading
activity, clearing activity, and customer identity; that the parties
to the agreement have reasonable ability to obtain access to and
produce requested information; and that no existing rules, laws, or
practices would impede one party to the agreement from obtaining
this information from, or producing it to, the other party.'' The
Commission has historically held that joint membership in the ISG
constitutes such a surveillance sharing agreement. See Wilshire
Phoenix Disapproval.
\32\ See Wilshire Phoenix Disapproval.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Commission has also recognized that the ``regulated market of
significant size'' standard is not the only means for satisfying
Section 6(b)(5) of the act, specifically providing that a listing
exchange could demonstrate that ``other means to prevent fraudulent and
manipulative acts and practices'' are sufficient to justify dispensing
with the requisite surveillance-sharing agreement.\33\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\33\ See Winklevoss Order at 37580. The Commission has also
specifically noted that it ``is not applying a `cannot be
manipulated' standard; instead, the Commission is examining whether
the proposal meets the requirements of the Exchange Act and,
pursuant to its Rules of Practice, places the burden on the listing
exchange to demonstrate the validity of its contentions and to
establish that the requirements of the Exchange Act have been met.''
Id. at 37582.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

(a) Manipulation of the ETP
The significant market test requires that there is a reasonable
likelihood that a person attempting to manipulate the ETP would also
have to trade on that market to manipulate the ETP, so that a
surveillance-sharing agreement would assist the listing exchange in
detecting and deterring misconduct. In light of the similarly high
correlation between spot ETH/CME Ether Futures and spot bitcoin/CME
Bitcoin Futures, applying the same rationale that the Commission
applied to a Spot Bitcoin ETP in the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order
also indicates that this test is satisfied for this proposal. As noted
above, in the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order, the SEC concluded that:

. . . fraud or manipulation that impacts prices in spot bitcoin
markets would likely similarly impact CME bitcoin futures prices.
And because the CME's surveillance can assist in detecting those
impacts on CME bitcoin futures prices, the Exchanges' comprehensive
surveillance-sharing agreement with the CME . . . can be reasonably
expected to assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative
acts and practices in the specific context of the [p]roposals.\34\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\34\ See the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order at 3011-3012.

The assumptions from this statement are also true for CME Ether
Futures. CME Ether Futures pricing is based on pricing from spot ether
markets. The statement from the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order that
the surveillance-sharing agreement with the CME ``can be reasonably
expected to assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative acts
and practices in the specific context of the [p]roposals'' makes clear
that the Commission believes that CME's surveillance can capture the
effects of trading on the relevant spot markets on the pricing of CME
Bitcoin Futures. This same logic would extend to CME Ether Futures
markets where CME's surveillance would be able to capture the effects
of trading on the relevant spot markets on the pricing of CME Ether
Futures.
(b) Predominant Influence on Prices in Spot and Ether Futures
The Exchange and Sponsor also believe that trading in the Shares
would not be the predominant force on prices in the CME Ether Futures
market for a number of reasons. First, because the Trust would not hold
CME Ether Futures contracts, the only way that it could be the
predominant force on prices in that market is through the spot markets
that CME Ether Futures contracts use for pricing.\35\ The Sponsor notes
that ether total 24-hour spot trading volume has averaged $15.82
billion over the year ending February 1, 2024.\36\ The Sponsor expects
that the Trust would represent a very small percentage of this daily
trading volume in the spot ether market even in its most aggressive
projections for the Trust's assets and, thus, the Trust would not have
an impact on the spot market and therefore could not be the predominant
force on prices in the CME Ether Futures market. Second, much like the
CME Bitcoin Futures market, the CME Ether Futures market has progressed
and matured significantly. As the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C.
Circuit found in its review of the Grayscale Order, ``Because the spot
market is deeper and more liquid than the futures market, manipulation
should be more difficult, not less.'' The Exchange and sponsor agree
with this sentiment and believe it applies equally to the spot ether
and CME Ether Futures markets.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\35\ This logic is reflected by the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the D.C. Circuit on its review of the Grayscale Order at 17-18. See
Grayscale Investments, LLC v. SEC, 82 F. 4th 1239 (D.C. Cir. 2023).
Specifically, the court found that ``Because Grayscale owns no
futures contracts, trading in Grayscale can affect the futures
market only through the spot market . . . But Grayscale holds just
3.4 percent of outstanding bitcoin, and the Commission did not
suggest Grayscale can dominate the price of bitcoin.''
\36\ Source: CryptoCompare.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

(c) Other Means To Prevent Fraudulent and Manipulative Acts and
Practices
As noted above, the Commission also permits a listing exchange to
demonstrate that ``other means to prevent fraudulent and manipulative
acts and practices'' are sufficient to justify dispensing with the
requisite surveillance-sharing agreement. The Exchange and Sponsor
believe that such conditions are present.
The Exchange believes that the proposal is designed to protect
investors and the public interest. Over the past several years, U.S.
investor exposure to ether through OTC Ether Funds has grown into the
tens of billions of dollars and more than a billion dollars of exposure
through Ether Futures ETFs.

[[Page 46520]]

With that growth, so too has grown the quantifiable investor protection
issues to U.S. investors through roll costs for Ether Futures ETFs and
premium/discount volatility and management fees for OTC Ether Funds.
The Exchange believes that the concerns related to the prevention of
fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices have been sufficiently
addressed to be consistent with the Act and, to the extent that the
Commission disagrees with that assertion, also believes that such
concerns are now outweighed by these investor protection concerns. As
such, the Exchange believes that approving this proposal (and
comparable proposals) provides the Commission with the opportunity to
allow U.S. investors with access to ether in a regulated and
transparent exchange-traded vehicle that would act to limit risk to
U.S. investors by: (i) reducing premium and discount volatility; (ii)
reducing management fees through meaningful competition; (iii) reducing
risks and costs associated with investing in Ether Futures ETFs and
operating companies that are imperfect proxies for ether exposure; and
(iv) providing an alternative to custodying spot ether.
ARK 21Shares Ethereum Trust
Delaware Trust Company is the trustee (``Trustee''). The Bank of
New York Mellon will be the administrator (``Administrator'') and
transfer agent (``Transfer Agent''). Foreside Global Services, LLC will
be the marketing agent (``Marketing Agent'') in connection with the
creation and redemption of ``Baskets'' of Shares. ARK Investment
Management LLC (the ``Subadvisor'') is the sub-adviser of the Trust and
will provide data, research, and as needed, operational support to the
Trust including with respect to assistance in the marketing of the
Shares. As noted above, Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC, a third-
party regulated custodian (the ``Custodian''), will be responsible for
custody of the Trust's ether. The Bank of New York Mellon (the ``Cash
Custodian'') will act as custodian of the Trust's cash and cash
equivalents.
According to the Registration Statement, each Share will represent
a fractional undivided beneficial interest in the Trust. The Trust's
assets will only consist of ether, cash, or cash and cash
equivalents.\37\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\37\ Cash equivalents are short-term instruments with maturities
of less than 3 months.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

According to the Registration Statement, the Trust will be neither
an investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of
1940, as amended,\38\ nor a commodity pool for purposes of the
Commodity Exchange Act (``CEA''), and neither the Trust nor the Sponsor
is subject to regulation as a commodity pool operator or a commodity
trading adviser in connection with the Shares.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\38\ 15 U.S.C. 80a-1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Neither the Trust, nor the Sponsor, nor the Custodian, nor any
other person associated with the Trust will, directly or indirectly,
engage in action where any portion of the Trust's ETH becomes subject
to the Ethereum proof-of-stake validation or is used to earn additional
ETH or generate income or other earnings. The Trust will not acquire
and will disclaim any incidental right (``IR'') or IR asset received,
for example as a result of forks or airdrops, and such assets will not
be taken into account for purposes of determining NAV.
When the Trust creates or redeems its Shares, it will do so in cash
transactions in blocks of 10,000 Shares (a ``Creation Basket'') at the
Trust's net asset value (``NAV''). Authorized participants will
deliver, or facilitate the delivery of, cash to the Trust's account
with the Cash Custodian in exchange for Shares when they create Shares,
and the Trust, through the Cash Custodian, will deliver cash to such
authorized participants when they redeem Shares with the Trust.
Authorized participants may then offer Shares to the public at prices
that depend on various factors, including the supply and demand for
Shares, the value of the Trust's assets, and market conditions at the
time of a transaction.
As noted above, the Trust is designed to protect investors against
the risk of losses through fraud and insolvency that arise by holding
ether on centralized platforms. Specifically, the Trust is designed to
protect investors as follows:
(i) Assets of the Trust Protected From Insolvency
The Trust's ether will be held by its Custodian,\39\ which is a New
York chartered trust company overseen by the NYDFS and a qualified
custodian under Rule 206-4 of the Investment Adviser Act. The Custodian
will custody the Trust's ether pursuant to a custody agreement, which
requires the Custodian to maintain the Trust's ether in segregated
accounts that clearly identify the Trust as owner of the accounts and
assets held on those accounts; the segregation will be both from the
proprietary property of the Custodian and the assets of any other
customer. Such an arrangement is generally deemed to be ``bankruptcy
remote,'' that is, in the event of an insolvency of the Custodian,
assets held in such segregated accounts would not become property of
the Custodian's estate and would not be available to satisfy claims of
creditors of the Custodian. In addition, according to the Registration
Statement, the Custodian carries fidelity insurance, which covers
assets held by the Custodian in custody from risks such as theft of
funds. These arrangements provide significant protections to investors
and could have mitigated the type of losses incurred by investors in
the numerous crypto-related insolvencies, including Celsius, Voyager,
BlockFi and FTX.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\39\ According to the Registration Statement, the Trust's cash
will be held at The Bank of New York Mellon pursuant to a cash
custody agreement.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

(ii) Trust's Transfer Agent Will Instruct Disposition of Trust's Ether
According to the Registration Statement, except with respect to
sale of ether from time to time to cover expenses of the Trust, the
only time ether will move into or out from the Trust will be with
respect to creations or redemptions of Shares of the Trust. In such
cases, a third party will use cash to buy and deliver ether to create
Shares or withdraw and sell ether for cash to redeem Shares, on behalf
of the Trust. Authorized participants will deliver cash to the Trust's
account with the Cash Custodian in exchange for Shares of the Trust,
and the Trust, through the Cash Custodian, will deliver cash to
authorized participants when those authorized participants redeem
Shares of the Trust. The Transfer Agent will facilitate the settlement
of Shares in response to the placement of creation orders and
redemption orders from authorized participants. The creation and
redemption procedures are administered by the Transfer Agent, an
independent third party. Specifically, Shares are issued in registered
form in accordance with the Trust agreement.\40\ The Transfer Agent has
been appointed registrar and transfer agent for the purpose of
transferring Shares in certificated form. The Transfer Agent keeps a
record of all holders of the Shares in certified form in the registry.
The Sponsor recognizes transfers of Shares in certified form only if
done in accordance with the Trust agreement. In other words, according
to the Registration Statement, with very limited exceptions, the
Sponsor will not give instructions with respect to the transfer or
disposition of the Trust's ether. Ether owned by the Trust will at all
times be held by, and in the control

[[Page 46521]]

of, the Custodian, and transfer of such ether to or from the Custodian
will occur only in connection with creation and redemptions of Shares.
This will provide safeguards against the movement of ether owned by the
Trust by or to the Sponsor or affiliates of the Sponsor.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\40\ The Trust agreement refers to the ``Amended and Restated
Trust Agreement of Ark 21Shares Ethereum ETF.''
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

(iii) Trust's Assets Are Subject to Regular Audit
According to the Registration Statement, audit trails exist for all
movement of ether within Custodian-controlled ether wallets and are
audited annually for accuracy and completeness by an independent
external audit firm. In addition, the Trust will be audited by an
independent registered public accounting firm on a regular basis.
(iv) Trust Is Subject to the Exchange's Obligations of Companies Listed
on the Exchange and Applicable Corporate Governance Requirements
The Trust will be subject to the obligations of companies listed on
the Exchange set forth in BZX Rule 14.6, which require the listed
companies to make public disclosure of material events and any
notifications of deficiency by the Exchange, file and distribute period
financial reports, engage independent public accountants registered
with the Exchange, among other things. Such disclosures serve a key
investor protection role. In addition, the Trust will be subject to the
corporate governance requirements for companies listed on the Exchange
set forth in BZX Rule 14.10.
Investment Objective
According to the Registration Statement and as further described
below, the investment objective of the Trust will be to seek to track
the performance of ether, as measured by the performance of the CME CF
Ether-Dollar Reference Rate--New York Variant (the ``Index''), adjusted
for the Trust's expenses and other liabilities. In seeking to achieve
its investment objective, the Trust will hold ether and will value the
Shares daily based on the Index. The Trust will process all creations
and redemptions in cash transactions with authorized participants. The
Trust is not actively managed.
The Index
The Trust will use the Index to calculate the Trust's NAV. The
Trust will determine the ether Index price and value its Shares daily
based on the value of ether as reflected by the Index. The Index is
calculated daily and aggregates the notional value of ether trading
across major ether spot trading platforms. The Index currently uses
substantially the same methodology as the CME CF Ether Dollar Reference
Rate (``ERR''), including utilizing the same six ether trading
platforms, which is the underlying rate to determine settlement of CME
Ether Futures contracts, except that the Index is calculated as of 4:00
p.m. ET, whereas the ERR is calculated as of 4:00 p.m. London time. The
administrator of the Index is CF Benchmarks Ltd. (the ``Index
Provider'').
The Index, which was introduced on November 14, 2016, is based on
materially the same methodology (except calculation time) as the Index
Provider's ERR, which was first introduced on May 14, 2018, and is the
rate on which CME Ether Futures contracts are cash-settled in U.S.
dollars at the CME. The Index is designed based on the IOSCO Principals
for Financial Benchmarks. The administrator of the Index is the Index
Provider. The Index is calculated daily and aggregates the notional
value of ether trading activity across major ether spot trading
platforms.
The Sponsor believes that the use of the Index is reflective of a
reasonable valuation of the average spot price of ether and that
resistance to manipulation is a priority aim of its design methodology.
The methodology: (i) takes an observation period and divides it into
equal partitions of time; (ii) then calculates the volume-weighted
median of all transactions within each partition; and (iii) the value
is determined from the arithmetic mean of the volume-weighted medians,
equally weighted. By employing the foregoing steps, the Index thereby
seeks to ensure that transactions in ether conducted at outlying prices
do not have an undue effect on the value of a specific partition, large
trades or clusters of trades transacted over a short period of time
will not have an undue influence on the Index level, and the effect of
large trades at prices that deviate from the prevailing price are
mitigated from having an undue influence on the Index level.
In addition, the Sponsor notes that an oversight function is
implemented by the Index Provider in seeking to ensure that the Index
is administered through codified policies for Index integrity. The
Trust will determine the value of its Shares daily based on the value
of ether as reflected by the Index. The Index is calculated daily and
aggregates the notional value of ether trading activity across major
ether spot trading platforms. The Index is designed based on the IOSCO
Principals for Financial Benchmarks. The Trust also uses the ether
price determined by the Index to calculate its ``Ether Holdings,''
which is the aggregate U.S. Dollar value of ether in the Trust, based
on the ether price determined by the Index, less its liabilities and
expenses. ``Ether Holdings per Share'' is calculated by dividing Ether
Holdings by the number of Shares currently outstanding. Ether Holdings
and Ether Holdings per Share are not measures calculated in accordance
with GAAP. Ether Holdings is not intended to be a substitute for the
Trust's NAV calculated in accordance with GAAP, and Ether Holdings per
Share is not intended to be a substitute for the Trust's NAV per Share
calculated in accordance with GAAP.
The Index was created to facilitate financial products based on
ether. It serves as a once-a-day benchmark rate of the U.S. dollar
price of ether (USD/ETH), calculated as of 4:00 p.m. ET. The Index
aggregates the trade flow of several ether trading platforms, during an
observation window between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. ET into the U.S.
dollar price of one ether at 4:00 p.m. ET. Specifically, the Index is
calculated based on the ``Relevant Transactions'' (as defined below) of
all of its constituent ether trading platforms, which are currently
Coinbase, Bitstamp, Kraken, itBit, LMAX Digital and Gemini (the
``Constituent Platforms''), as follows:
All Relevant Transactions are added to a joint list,
recording the time of execution, trade price and size for each
transaction.
The list is partitioned by timestamp into 12 equally sized
time intervals of five-minute length.
For each partition separately, the volume-weighted median
trade price is calculated from the trade prices and sizes of all
Relevant Transactions, i.e., across all Constituent Platforms. A
volume-weighted median differs from a standard median in that a
weighting factor, in this case trade size, is factored into the
calculation.
The Index is then determined by the equally weighted
average of the volume medians of all partitions.
The Index does not include any futures prices in its methodology. A
``Relevant Transaction'' is any cryptocurrency versus U.S. dollar spot
trade that occurs during the observation window between 3:00 p.m. and
4:00 p.m. Eastern time on a Constituent Platform in the ETH/USD pair
that is reported and disseminated by a Constituent Platform through its
publicly available API and observed by the Index Provider. An oversight
function is implemented by the Index Provider in seeking to ensure that
the

[[Page 46522]]

Index is administered through the Index Provider's codified policies
for Index integrity.
Index data and the description of the Index are based on
information made publicly available by the Index Provider on its
website at https://www.cfbenchmarks.com.
Net Asset Value
NAV means the total assets of the Trust (which includes all ether
and cash and cash equivalents) less total liabilities of the Trust. The
Administrator determines the NAV of the Trust on each day that the
Exchange is open for regular trading, as promptly as practical after
4:00 p.m. ET. The NAV of the Trust is the aggregate value of the
Trust's assets less its estimated accrued but unpaid liabilities (which
include accrued expenses). In determining the Trust's NAV, the
Administrator values the ether held by the Trust based on the price set
by the Index as of 4:00 p.m. ET. The Administrator also determines the
NAV per Share.
The NAV for the Trust will be calculated by the Administrator once
a day and will be disseminated daily to all market participants at the
same time.
If the Index is not available, or if the Sponsor determines in good
faith that the Index does not reflect an accurate ether price, then the
Administrator will employ an alternative method to determine the fair
value of the Trust's assets.\41\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\41\ Such alternative method will only be employed on an ad hoc
basis. Any permanent change to the calculation of the NAV would
require a proposed rule change under Rule 19b-4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Availability of Information
In addition to the price transparency of the Index, the Trust will
provide information regarding the Trust's ether holdings as well as
additional data regarding the Trust. The website for the Trust, which
will be publicly accessible at no charge, will contain the following
information: (a) the current NAV per Share daily and the prior business
day's NAV per Share and the reported BZX Official Closing Price; \42\
(b) the BZX Official Closing Price in relation to the NAV per Share as
of the time the NAV is calculated and a calculation of the premium or
discount of such price against such NAV per Share; (c) data in chart
form displaying the frequency distribution of discounts and premiums of
the BZX Official Closing Price against the NAV per Share, within
appropriate ranges for each of the four previous calendar quarters (or
for the life of the Trust, if shorter); (d) the prospectus; and (e)
other applicable quantitative information. The aforementioned
information will be published as of the close of business and available
on the Sponsor's website at www.21shares.com, or any successor thereto.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\42\ As defined in Rule 11.23(a)(3), the term ``BZX Official
Closing Price'' shall mean the price disseminated to the
consolidated tape as the market center closing trade.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Intraday Indicative Value (``IIV'') will be calculated by using
the prior day's closing NAV per Share as a base and updating that value
during Regular Trading Hours to reflect changes in the value of the
Trust's ether during the trading day. The IIV disseminated during
Regular Trading Hours should not be viewed as an actual real-time
update of the NAV, which will be calculated only once at the end of
each trading day. The IIV may differ from the NAV due to the
differences in the time window of trades used to calculate each price
(the NAV uses the Index price as of 4 p.m. ET, whereas the IIV draws
prices from the last trade on each Constituent Platform \43\ in an
effort to produce a relevant, real-time price). The Trust will provide
an IIV per Share updated every 15 seconds, as calculated by the
Exchange or a third-party financial data provider during the Exchange's
Regular Trading Hours (9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. E.T.). The IIV will be
widely disseminated on a per Share basis every 15 seconds during the
Exchange's Regular Trading Hours through the facilities of the
consolidated tape association (CTA) and Consolidated Quotation System
(CQS) high speed lines. In addition, the IIV will be available through
on-line information services.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\43\ The Constituent Platforms are the same platforms used to
calculate the Index.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The price of ether will be made available by one or more major
market data vendors, updated at least every 15 seconds during Regular
Trading Hours.
As noted above, the Index is calculated daily and aggregates the
notional value of ether trading activity across major ether spot
trading platforms. Index data, value, and the description of the Index
are based on information made publicly available by the Index Provider
on its website at https://www.cfbenchmarks.com.
Quotation and last sale information for ether is widely
disseminated through a variety of major market data vendors, including
Bloomberg and Reuters. Information relating to trading, including price
and volume information, in ether is available from major market data
vendors and from the trading platforms on which ether are traded. Depth
of book information is also available from ether trading platforms. The
normal trading hours for ether trading platforms are 24 hours per day,
365 days per year.
Information regarding market price and trading volume of the Shares
will be continually available on a real-time basis throughout the day
on brokers' computer screens and other electronic services. Information
regarding the previous day's BZX Official Closing Price and trading
volume information for the Shares will be published daily in the
financial section of newspapers. Quotation and last-sale information
regarding the Shares will be disseminated through the facilities of the
CTA.
The Ether Custodian
The Custodian carefully considers the design of the physical,
operational, and cryptographic systems for secure storage of the
Trust's private keys in an effort to lower the risk of loss or theft.
The Custodian utilizes a variety of security measures to ensure that
private keys necessary to transfer digital assets remain uncompromised
and that the Trust maintains exclusive ownership of its assets. The
operational procedures of the Custodian are reviewed by third-party
advisors with specific expertise in physical security. The devices that
store the keys will never be connected to the internet or any other
public or private distributed network--this is colloquially known as
``cold storage.'' Only specific individuals are authorized to
participate in the custody process, and no individual acting alone will
be able to access or use any of the private keys. In addition, no
combination of the executive officers of the Sponsor or the investment
professionals managing the Trust, acting alone or together, will be
able to access or use any of the private keys that hold the Trust's
ether.
Creation and Redemption of Shares
When the Trust creates or redeems its Shares, it will do so in cash
transactions in blocks of 10,000 Shares that are based on the quantity
of ether attributable to each Share of the Trust (e.g., a Creation
Basket) at the Trust's NAV. The authorized participants will deliver
only cash to create Shares and will receive only cash when redeeming
Shares. Further, authorized participants will not directly or
indirectly purchase, hold, deliver, or receive ether as part of the
creation or redemption process or otherwise direct the Trust or a third
party with respect to purchasing, holding, delivering, or receiving
ether as part of the creation or redemption process. The Trust will
create Shares by receiving ether from a third party that is

[[Page 46523]]

not the authorized participant and the Trust--not the authorized
participant--is responsible for selecting the third party to deliver
the ether. Further, the third party will not be acting as an agent of
the authorized participant with respect to the delivery of the ether to
the Trust or acting at the direction of the authorized participant with
respect to the delivery of the ether to the Trust. The Trust will
redeem shares by delivering ether to a third party that is not the
authorized participant and the Trust--not the authorized participant--
is responsible for selecting the third party to receive the ether.
Further, the third party will not be acting as an agent of the
authorized participant with respect to the receipt of the ether from
the Trust or acting at the direction of the authorized participant with
respect to the receipt of the ether from the Trust.
According to the Registration Statement, on any business day, an
authorized participant may place an order to create one or more
Creation Baskets. Purchase orders must be placed by 12:00 p.m. Eastern
Time, the close of regular trading on the Exchange, or another time
determined by the Sponsor. The day on which an order is received is
considered the purchase order date. The total deposit of cash required
is based on the combined NAV of the number of Shares included in the
Creation Baskets being created determined as of 4:00 p.m. ET on the
date the order to purchase is properly received. The Administrator
determines the quantity of ether associated with a Creation Basket for
a given day by dividing the number of ether held by the Trust as of the
opening of business on that business day, adjusted for the amount of
ether constituting estimated accrued but unpaid fees and expenses of
the Trust as of the opening of business on that business day, by the
quotient of the number of Shares outstanding at the opening of business
divided by the number of Shares in a Creation Basket.
The procedures by which an authorized participant can redeem one or
more Creation Baskets mirror the procedures for the creation of
Creation Baskets.
The Sponsor will maintain ownership and control of ether in a
manner consistent with good delivery requirements for spot commodity
transactions.
Rule 14.11(e)(4)--Commodity-Based Trust Shares
The Shares will be subject to BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4), which sets
forth the initial and continued listing criteria applicable to
Commodity-Based Trust Shares. The Exchange represents that, for initial
and continued listing, the Trust must be in compliance with Rule 10A-3
under the Act. A minimum of 10,000 Shares will be outstanding at the
commencement of listing on the Exchange. The Exchange will obtain a
representation that the NAV will be calculated daily and information
about the NAV and the assets of the Trust will be made available to all
market participants at the same time. The Exchange notes that, as
defined in Rule 14.11(e)(4)(C)(i), the Shares will be: (a) issued by a
trust that holds (1) a specified commodity \44\ deposited with the
trust, or (2) a specified commodity and, in addition to such specified
commodity, cash; (b) issued by such trust in a specified aggregate
minimum number in return for a deposit of a quantity of the underlying
commodity and/or cash; and (c) when aggregated in the same specified
minimum number, may be redeemed at a holder's request by such trust
which will deliver to the redeeming holder the quantity of the
underlying commodity and/or cash.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\44\ For purposes of Rule 14.11(e)(4), the term commodity takes
on the definition of the term as provided in the Commodity Exchange
Act.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Upon termination of the Trust, the Shares will be removed from
listing. The Trustee, Delaware Trust Company, is a trust company having
substantial capital and surplus and the experience and facilities for
handling corporate trust business, as required under Rule
14.11(e)(4)(E)(iv)(a) and that no change will be made to the trustee
without prior notice to and approval of the Exchange. The Exchange also
notes that, pursuant to Rule 14.11(e)(4)(F), neither the Exchange nor
any agent of the Exchange shall have any liability for damages, claims,
losses or expenses caused by any errors, omissions or delays in
calculating or disseminating any underlying commodity value, the
current value of the underlying commodity required to be deposited to
the Trust in connection with issuance of Commodity-Based Trust Shares;
resulting from any negligent act or omission by the Exchange, or any
agent of the Exchange, or any act, condition or cause beyond the
reasonable control of the Exchange, its agent, including, but not
limited to, an act of God; fire; flood; extraordinary weather
conditions; war; insurrection; riot; strike; accident; action of
government; communications or power failure; equipment or software
malfunction; or any error, omission or delay in the reports of
transactions in an underlying commodity. Finally, as required in Rule
14.11(e)(4)(G), the Exchange notes that any registered market maker
(``Market Maker'') in the Shares must file with the Exchange in a
manner prescribed by the Exchange and keep current a list identifying
all accounts for trading in an underlying commodity, related commodity
futures or options on commodity futures, or any other related commodity
derivatives, which the registered Market Maker may have or over which
it may exercise investment discretion. No registered Market Maker shall
trade in an underlying commodity, related commodity futures or options
on commodity futures, or any other related commodity derivatives, in an
account in which a registered Market Maker, directly or indirectly,
controls trading activities, or has a direct interest in the profits or
losses thereof, which has not been reported to the Exchange as required
by this Rule. In addition to the existing obligations under Exchange
rules regarding the production of books and records (see, e.g., Rule
4.2), the registered Market Maker in Commodity-Based Trust Shares shall
make available to the Exchange such books, records or other information
pertaining to transactions by such entity or registered or non-
registered employee affiliated with such entity for its or their own
accounts for trading the underlying physical commodity, related
commodity futures or options on commodity futures, or any other related
commodity derivatives, as may be requested by the Exchange.
The Exchange is able to obtain information regarding trading in the
Shares and the underlying ether, CME Ether Futures, options on CME
Ether Futures, or any other ether derivative through members acting as
registered Market Makers, in connection with their proprietary or
customer trades.
As a general matter, the Exchange has regulatory jurisdiction over
its Members and their associated persons, which include any person or
entity controlling a Member. To the extent the Exchange may be found to
lack jurisdiction over a subsidiary or affiliate of a Member that does
business only in commodities or futures contracts, the Exchange could
obtain information regarding the activities of such subsidiary or
affiliate through surveillance sharing agreements with regulatory
organizations of which such subsidiary or affiliate is a member.
Trading Halts
With respect to trading halts, the Exchange may consider all
relevant factors in exercising its discretion to halt or suspend
trading in the Shares. The Exchange will halt trading in the Shares
under the conditions specified in BZX Rule 11.18. Trading may be halted
because of market conditions or for

[[Page 46524]]

reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in the Shares
inadvisable. These may include: (1) the extent to which trading is not
occurring in the ether underlying the Shares; or (2) whether other
unusual conditions or circumstances detrimental to the maintenance of a
fair and orderly market are present. Trading in the Shares also will be
subject to Rule 14.11(e)(4)(E)(ii), which sets forth circumstances
under which trading in the Shares may be halted.
If the IIV or the value of the Index is not being disseminated as
required, the Exchange may halt trading during the day in which the
interruption to the dissemination of the IIV or the value of the Index
occurs. If the interruption to the dissemination of the IIV or the
value of the Index persists past the trading day in which it occurred,
the Exchange will halt trading no later than the beginning of the
trading day following the interruption.
In addition, if the Exchange becomes aware that the NAV with
respect to the Shares is not disseminated to all market participants at
the same time, it will halt trading in the Shares until such time as
the NAV is available to all market participants.
Trading Rules
The Exchange deems the Shares to be equity securities, thus
rendering trading in the Shares subject to the Exchange's existing
rules governing the trading of equity securities. BZX will allow
trading in the Shares during all trading sessions on the Exchange. The
Exchange has appropriate rules to facilitate transactions in the Shares
during all trading sessions. As provided in BZX Rule 11.11(a) the
minimum price variation for quoting and entry of orders in securities
traded on the Exchange is $0.01 where the price is greater than $1.00
per share or $0.0001 where the price is less than $1.00 per share. The
Shares of the Trust will conform to the initial and continued listing
criteria set forth in BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4).
Surveillance
The Exchange represents that its surveillance procedures are
adequate to properly monitor the trading of the Shares on the Exchange
during all trading sessions and to deter and detect violations of
Exchange rules and the applicable federal securities laws. Trading of
the Shares through the Exchange will be subject to the Exchange's
surveillance procedures for derivative products, including Commodity-
Based Trust Shares. FINRA conducts certain cross-market surveillances
on behalf of the Exchange pursuant to a regulatory services agreement.
The Exchange is responsible for FINRA's performance under this
regulatory services agreement.
The Exchange or FINRA, on behalf of the Exchange, or both, will
communicate as needed regarding trading in the Shares, CME Ether
Futures, or any other ether derivative with other markets and other
entities that are members of the ISG, and the Exchange, or FINRA, on
behalf of the Exchange, or both, may obtain trading information
regarding trading in the Shares, CME Ether Futures, or any other ether
derivative from such markets and other entities.\45\ The Exchange may
obtain information regarding trading in the Shares, CME Ether Futures,
or any other ether derivative via ISG, from other exchanges who are
members or affiliates of the ISG, or with which the Exchange has
entered into a comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement.
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\45\ For a list of the current members and affiliate members of
ISG, see www.isgportal.com.
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In addition, the Exchange also has a general policy prohibiting the
distribution of material, non-public information by its employees.
The Sponsor has represented to the Exchange that it will advise the
Exchange of any failure by the Trust or the Shares to comply with the
continued listing requirements, and, pursuant to its obligations under
Section 19(g)(1) of the Exchange Act, the Exchange will surveil for
compliance with the continued listing requirements. If the Trust or the
Shares are not in compliance with the applicable listing requirements,
the Exchange will commence delisting procedures under Exchange Rule
14.12.
Information Circular
Prior to the commencement of trading, the Exchange will inform its
members in an Information Circular of the special characteristics and
risks associated with trading the Shares. Specifically, the Information
Circular will discuss the following: (i) the procedures for the
creation and redemption of Creation Baskets (and that the Shares are
not individually redeemable); (ii) BZX Rule 3.7, which imposes
suitability obligations on Exchange members with respect to
recommending transactions in the Shares to customers; (iii) how
information regarding the IIV and the Trust's NAV are disseminated;
(iv) the risks involved in trading the Shares outside of Regular
Trading Hours \46\ when an updated IIV will not be calculated or
publicly disseminated; (v) the requirement that members deliver a
prospectus to investors purchasing newly issued Shares prior to or
concurrently with the confirmation of a transaction; and (vi) trading
information. The Information Circular will also reference the fact that
there is no regulated source of last sale information regarding ether,
that the Commission has no jurisdiction over the trading of ether as a
commodity, and that the CFTC has regulatory jurisdiction over the
trading of CME Ether Futures and options on CME Ether Futures.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\46\ Regular Trading Hours is the time between 9:30 a.m. and
4:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

In addition, the Information Circular will advise members, prior to
the commencement of trading, of the prospectus delivery requirements
applicable to the Shares. Members purchasing the Shares for resale to
investors will deliver a prospectus to such investors. The Information
Circular will also discuss any exemptive, no-action and interpretive
relief granted by the Commission from any rules under the Act.
2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that the proposal is consistent with Section
6(b) of the Act \47\ in general and Section 6(b)(5) of the Act \48\ in
particular in that it is designed to prevent fraudulent and
manipulative acts and practices, to promote just and equitable
principles of trade, to foster cooperation and coordination with
persons engaged in facilitating transactions in securities, to remove
impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a free and open market and
a national market system and, in general, to protect investors and the
public interest.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\47\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.
\48\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
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The Commission has approved numerous series of Trust Issued
Receipts,\49\ including Commodity-Based Trust Shares,\50\ to be listed
on U.S. national securities exchanges. In order for any proposed rule
change from an exchange to be approved, the Commission must determine
that, among other things, the proposal is consistent with the
requirements of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act, specifically including: (i)
the requirement that a national securities exchange's rules are
designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices;
\51\ and

[[Page 46525]]

(ii) the requirement that an exchange proposal be designed, in general,
to protect investors and the public interest. The Exchange believes
that this proposal is consistent with the requirements of Section
6(b)(5) of the Act and that this filing sufficiently demonstrates that
the CME Ether Futures market represents a regulated market of
significant size and that, on the whole, the manipulation concerns
previously articulated by the Commission are sufficiently mitigated to
the point that they are outweighed by quantifiable investor protection
issues that would be resolved by approving this proposal.
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\49\ See Exchange Rule 14.11(f).
\50\ Commodity-Based Trust Shares, as described in Exchange Rule
14.11(e)(4), are a type of Trust Issued Receipt.
\51\ Much like bitcoin, the Exchange believes that ether is
resistant to price manipulation and that ``other means to prevent
fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices'' exist to justify
dispensing with the requisite surveillance sharing agreement. The
geographically diverse and continuous nature of ether trading render
it difficult and prohibitively costly to manipulate the price of
ETH. The fragmentation across ether platforms, the relatively slow
speed of transactions, and the capital necessary to maintain a
significant presence on each trading platform make manipulation of
ether prices through continuous trading activity challenging. To the
extent that there are ether trading platforms engaged in or allowing
wash trading or other activity intended to manipulate the price of
ether on other markets, such pricing does not normally impact prices
on other trading platforms because participants will generally
ignore markets with quotes that they deem non-executable. Moreover,
the linkage between the ether markets and the presence of
arbitrageurs in those markets means that the manipulation of the
price of ether price on any single venue would require manipulation
of the global ether price in order to be effective. Arbitrageurs
must have funds distributed across multiple trading platforms in
order to take advantage of temporary price dislocations, thereby
making it unlikely that there will be strong concentration of funds
on any particular ether trading platform or OTC platforms. As a
result, the potential for manipulation on a trading platform would
require overcoming the liquidity supply of such arbitrageurs who are
effectively eliminating any cross-market pricing differences.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

(i) Designed To Prevent Fraudulent and Manipulative Acts and Practices
In order to meet this standard in a proposal to list and trade a
series of Commodity-Based Trust Shares, the Commission requires that an
exchange demonstrate that there is a comprehensive surveillance-sharing
agreement in place \52\ with a regulated market of significant size.
Both the Exchange and CME are members of ISG. The only remaining issue
to be addressed is whether the CME Ether Futures market constitutes a
market of significant size, which both the Exchange and the Sponsor
believe that it does. The terms ``significant market'' and ``market of
significant size'' include a market (or group of markets) as to which:
(a) there is a reasonable likelihood that a person attempting to
manipulate the ETP would also have to trade on that market to
manipulate the ETP, so that a surveillance-sharing agreement would
assist the listing exchange in detecting and deterring misconduct; and
(b) it is unlikely that trading in the ETP would be the predominant
influence on prices in that market.\53\
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\52\ As previously articulated by the Commission, ``The standard
requires such surveillance-sharing agreements since ``they provide a
necessary deterrent to manipulation because they facilitate the
availability of information needed to fully investigate a
manipulation if it were to occur.'' The Commission has emphasized
that it is essential for an exchange listing a derivative securities
product to enter into a surveillance-sharing agreement with markets
trading underlying securities for the listing exchange to have the
ability to obtain information necessary to detect, investigate, and
deter fraud and market manipulation, as well as violations of
exchange rules and applicable federal securities laws and rules. The
hallmarks of a surveillance-sharing agreement are that the agreement
provides for the sharing of information about market trading
activity, clearing activity, and customer identity; that the parties
to the agreement have reasonable ability to obtain access to and
produce requested information; and that no existing rules, laws, or
practices would impede one party to the agreement from obtaining
this information from, or producing it to, the other party.'' The
Commission has historically held that joint membership in the ISG
constitutes such a surveillance sharing agreement. See Wilshire
Phoenix Disapproval.
\53\ See Wilshire Phoenix Disapproval.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Commission has also recognized that the ``regulated market of
significant size'' standard is not the only means for satisfying
Section 6(b)(5) of the act, specifically providing that a listing
exchange could demonstrate that ``other means to prevent fraudulent and
manipulative acts and practices'' are sufficient to justify dispensing
with the requisite surveillance-sharing agreement.^{54 55}
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\54\ See Winklevoss Order at 37580. The Commission has also
specifically noted that it ``is not applying a `cannot be
manipulated' standard; instead, the Commission is examining whether
the proposal meets the requirements of the Exchange Act and,
pursuant to its Rules of Practice, places the burden on the listing
exchange to demonstrate the validity of its contentions and to
establish that the requirements of the Exchange Act have been met.''
Id. at 37582.
\55\ According to reports, the Commission is poised to allow the
launch of ETFs registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940,
as amended (the ``1940 Act''), that provide exposure to ether
primarily through CME Ether Futures (``ETH Futures ETFs'') as early
as October 2023. Allowing such products to list and trade is a
productive first step in providing U.S. investors and traders with
transparent, exchange-listed tools for expressing a view on ETH.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-08-17/sec-said-to-be-poised-to-allow-us-debut-of-ether-futures-etfs-eth#xj4y7vzkg.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

(a) Manipulation of the ETP
The significant market test requires that there is a reasonable
likelihood that a person attempting to manipulate the ETP would also
have to trade on that market to manipulate the ETP, so that a
surveillance-sharing agreement would assist the listing exchange in
detecting and deterring misconduct. In light of the similarly high
correlation between spot ETH/CME Ether Futures and spot bitcoin/CME
Bitcoin Futures, applying the same rationale that the Commission
applied to the Bitcoin Futures ETF and in the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval
Order also indicates that this test is satisfied for this proposal. As
noted above, in the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order, the SEC concluded
that:

. . . fraud or manipulation that impacts prices in spot bitcoin
markets would likely similarly impact CME bitcoin futures prices.
And because the CME's surveillance can assist in detecting those
impacts on CME bitcoin futures prices, the Exchanges' comprehensive
surveillance-sharing agreement with the CME . . . can be reasonably
expected to assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative
acts and practices in the specific context of the [p]roposals.\56\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\56\ See the Spot Bitcoin ETP Approval Order at 3011-3012.

[[Page 46526]]

justify dispensing with the requisite surveillance-sharing agreement.
The Exchange and Sponsor believe that such conditions are present.
The Exchange believes that the proposal is designed to protect
investors and the public interest. Over the past several years, U.S.
investor exposure to ether through OTC Ether Funds has grown into the
tens of billions of dollars and more than a billion dollars of exposure
through Ether Futures ETFs. With that growth, so too has grown the
quantifiable investor protection issues to U.S. investors through roll
costs for Ether Futures ETFs and premium/discount volatility and
management fees for OTC Ether Funds. The Exchange believes that the
concerns related to the prevention of fraudulent and manipulative acts
and practices have been sufficiently addressed to be consistent with
the Act and, to the extent that the Commission disagrees with that
assertion, also believes that such concerns are now outweighed by these
investor protection concerns. As such, the Exchange believes that
approving this proposal (and comparable proposals) provides the
Commission with the opportunity to allow U.S. investors with access to
ether in a regulated and transparent exchange-traded vehicle that would
act to limit risk to U.S. investors by: (i) reducing premium and
discount volatility; (ii) reducing management fees through meaningful
competition; (iii) reducing risks and costs associated with investing
in Ether Futures ETFs and operating companies that are imperfect
proxies for ether exposure; and (iv) providing an alternative to
custodying spot ether.
Commodity-Based Trust Shares
The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is designed to
prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices in that the
Shares will be listed on the Exchange pursuant to the initial and
continued listing criteria in Exchange Rule 14.11(e)(4). The Exchange
believes that its surveillance procedures are adequate to properly
monitor the trading of the Shares on the Exchange during all trading
sessions and to deter and detect violations of Exchange rules and the
applicable federal securities laws. Trading of the Shares through the
Exchange will be subject to the Exchange's surveillance procedures for
derivative products, including Commodity-Based Trust Shares. The issuer
has represented to the Exchange that it will advise the Exchange of any
failure by the Trust or the Shares to comply with the continued listing
requirements, and, pursuant to its obligations under Section 19(g)(1)
of the Exchange Act, the Exchange will surveil for compliance with the
continued listing requirements. If the Trust or the Shares are not in
compliance with the applicable listing requirements, the Exchange will
commence delisting procedures under Exchange Rule 14.12. The Exchange
may obtain information regarding trading in the Shares and listed ether
derivatives via the ISG, from other exchanges who are members or
affiliates of the ISG, or with which the Exchange has entered into a
comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement.
Availability of Information
In addition to the price transparency of the Index, the Trust will
provide information regarding the Trust's ether holdings as well as
additional data regarding the Trust. The website for the Trust, which
will be publicly accessible at no charge, will contain the following
information: (a) the current NAV per Share daily and the prior business
day's NAV per Share and the reported BZX Official Closing Price; (b)
the BZX Official Closing Price in relation to the NAV per Share as of
the time the NAV is calculated and a calculation of the premium or
discount of such price against such NAV per Share; (c) data in chart
form displaying the frequency distribution of discounts and premiums of
the BZX Official Closing Price against the NAV per Share, within
appropriate ranges for each of the four previous calendar quarters (or
for the life of the Trust, if shorter); (d) the prospectus; and (e)
other applicable quantitative information. The aforementioned
information will be published as of the close of business and available
on the Sponsor's website at www.21shares.com, or any successor thereto.
The IIV will be calculated by using the prior day's closing NAV per
Share as a base and updating that value during Regular Trading Hours to
reflect changes in the value of the Trust's ether during the trading
day. The IIV disseminated during Regular Trading Hours should not be
viewed as an actual real-time update of the NAV, which will be
calculated only once at the end of each trading day. The IIV may differ
from the NAV due to the differences in the time window of trades used
to calculate each price (the NAV uses the Index price as of 4 p.m. ET,
whereas the IIV draws prices from the last trade on each Constituent
Platform in an effort to produce a relevant, real-time price). The
Trust will provide an IIV per Share updated every 15 seconds, as
calculated by the Exchange or a third-party financial data provider
during the Exchange's Regular Trading Hours (9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
E.T.). The IIV will be widely disseminated on a per Share basis every
15 seconds during the Exchange's Regular Trading Hours through the
facilities of the CTA and CQS high speed lines. In addition, the IIV
will be available through on-line information services.
The price of ether will be made available by one or more major
market data vendors, updated at least every 15 seconds during Regular
Trading Hours.
As noted above, the Index is calculated daily and aggregates the
notional value of ether trading activity across major ether spot
trading platforms. Index data, value, and the description of the Index
are based on information made publicly available by the Index Provider
on its website at https://www.cfbenchmarks.com.
Quotation and last sale information for ether is widely
disseminated through a variety of major market data vendors, including
Bloomberg and Reuters. Information relating to trading, including price
and volume information, in ether is available from major market data
vendors and from the trading platforms on which ether are traded. Depth
of book information is also available from ether trading platforms. The
normal trading hours for ether trading platforms are 24 hours per day,
365 days per year.
Information regarding market price and trading volume of the Shares
will be continually available on a real-time basis throughout the day
on brokers' computer screens and other electronic services. Information
regarding the previous day's BZX Official Closing Price and trading
volume information for the Shares will be published daily in the
financial section of newspapers. Quotation and last-sale information
regarding the Shares will be disseminated through the facilities of the
CTA.
In sum, the Exchange believes that this proposal is consistent with
the requirements of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act, that this filing
sufficiently demonstrates that the CME Ether Futures market represents
a regulated market of significant size, and that on the whole the
manipulation concerns previously articulated by the Commission are
sufficiently mitigated to the point that they are outweighed by
investor protection issues that would be resolved by approving this
proposal.
The Exchange believes that the proposal is, in particular, designed
to protect investors and the public interest. The investor protection
issues for U.S. investors has grown significantly over the last several
years, through roll costs

[[Page 46527]]

for ether Futures ETFs and premium/discount volatility and management
fees for OTC Ether Funds. As discussed throughout, this growth investor
protection concerns need to be re-evaluated and rebalanced with the
prevention of fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices concerns
that previous disapproval orders have relied upon. Finally, the
Exchange notes that in addition to all of the arguments herein which it
believes sufficiently establish the CME Ether Futures market as a
regulated market of significant size, it is logically inconsistent to
find that the CME Ether Futures market is a significant market as it
relates to the CME Ether Futures market, but not a significant market
as it relates to the ether spot market for the numerous reasons laid
out above.
For the above reasons, the Exchange believes that the proposed rule
change is consistent with the requirements of Section 6(b)(5) of the
Act.

B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will
impose any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate
in furtherance of the purpose of the Act. The Exchange notes that the
proposed rule change, rather will facilitate the listing and trading of
an additional exchange-traded product that will enhance competition
among both market participants and listing venues, to the benefit of
investors and the marketplace.

C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others

The Exchange has neither solicited nor received written comments on
the proposed rule change.

III. Solicitation of Comments

Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views and
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of
the following methods:

Electronic Comments

Use the Commission's internet comment form (https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
Send an email to [email protected]. Please include
file number SR-CboeBZX-2023-070 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities
and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549-1090.

All submissions should refer to file number SR-CboeBZX-2023-070. This
file number should be included on the subject line if email is used. To
help the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently,
please use only one method. The Commission will post all comments on
the Commission's internet website (https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all
written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that are
filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating to
the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person, other
than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for website viewing and
printing in the Commission's Public Reference Room, 100 F Street NE,
Washington, DC 20549, on official business days between the hours of 10
a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of the filing also will be available for
inspection and copying at the principal office of the Exchange. Do not
include personal identifiable information in submissions; you should
submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. We
may redact in part or withhold entirely from publication submitted
material that is obscene or subject to copyright protection. All
submissions should refer to file number SR-CboeBZX-2023-070 and should
be submitted on or before June 20, 2024.

For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\57\
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\57\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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J. Matthew DeLesDernier,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2024-11708 Filed 5-28-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P

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