Grayscale filed a reply brief in its appeal of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) denial of its application to convert its $12-billion Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into a spot-based Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF). The brief, filed in the District of Columbia Circuit Court, addressed points made in the SEC reply brief filed in December and restated its own arguments.
The SEC based its decision on findings that Grayscale’s proposal did not sufficiently protect against fraud and manipulation. The agency had made similar findings in a number of earlier applications to create spot-based BTC ETFs.