The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved multiple-spot Ethereum ETFs, leading to a resolution of a bet on Polymarket, a blockchain-based prediction platform. The platform recorded over $13.2 million in wages on whether the SEC would approve an Ether ETF by May 31, closing the market with a “Yes” decision as of May 23.
However, this decision has led to a heated discussion among Polymarket users. Those who bet against the approval believe the decision was made too soon. They argue that in the U.S., an ETF needs more than just a 19b-4 filing; it also requires a Form S-1 to begin trading officially. With the S-1 filings still pending, they believe the “Yes” outcome is invalid.
The disagreement centers on how the platform defines “approved.” Some bettors believed the ETFs needed to be ready to trade by the deadline, while others felt that just having the 19b-4 filings approved was enough. This difference in opinion sparked a heated debate on the platform, generating nearly a thousand comments on the event page.
A leading opponent of the “No” vote, known as “JustKen,” cited a post by Matthew Sigel, the head of digital assets research at VanEck, on platform X. Sigel stated that ETFs are not officially “approved” until the SEC has signed off on both the S-1 and 19b-4 filings.
Amid this controversy, proposals for a compromise have emerged. Including a proposal to split the outcome 50/50, citing unclear rules as a reason for the dispute.
Polymarket, launched in 2020, has become well-known for allowing bets on various events, including this major crypto bet.
