ETF Drama! CEO’s Shade at Gensler 😱

by

Ah, the crypto markets. A shimmering, volatile surface reflecting the anxieties of men in grey suits and the fervent hopes of those convinced a digital tulip bulb will finance their retirement. Sal Gilbertie, the chief executive of Teucrium Trading – a name which, I daresay, sounds less like a financial institution and more like a particularly fussy Roman emperor – recently permitted a few pronouncements on this whole elaborate charade. Specifically, his firm’s brush with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and his rather peculiar affection for XRP. It began, naturally, with a polite request…or rather, a thinly veiled command.

The SEC, in its infinite wisdom (or perhaps a temporary lapse into common sense), initially suggested – with a politeness that bordered on menace – that Teucrium and others quietly retract their ETF filings. The rationale? A liquidity drought in the futures market. A pathetic spectacle, really. Gilbertie recounts how they, like obedient schoolboys, complied. Though, one suspects, they continued to monitor the situation with the grim fascination of entomologists observing a particularly sluggish beetle. Upon perceiving a slight improvement in liquidity, they dutifully resubmitted. A truly thrilling tale of bureaucratic cat-and-mouse, wouldn’t you agree? 🙄

SEC Changes the Rules Midway

Teucrium, possessing the foresight to file its Bitcoin futures ETF under the ponderous 1933 Act – a timeline stretching to a positively glacial 270 days – found itself… disadvantaged. For, lo and behold, Mr. Gary Gensler, erstwhile Chairman of the SEC, decided to rewrite the rules mid-game. He introduced the swifter, more accommodating 1940 Act (a mere 75 days!) typically reserved for the rather mundane world of mutual funds. And who promptly took advantage of this sudden shift? Why, the titans of finance, naturally – BlackRock, Fidelity, and a whole gaggle of similarly oversized entities. They received approvals with indecent haste, leaving Teucrium to contemplate the cruel ironies of timing. It was, as Gilbertie delicately phrased it, “very disconcerting.” One can almost smell the bruised egos.

Speaking to “Thinking Crypto” – a name so earnest it almost induces a toothache – Gilbertie lamented the lost opportunities. However, a silver lining emerged. Teucrium’s initial approval, it turns out, became a footnote in Grayscale’s legal skirmish with the SEC, a lawsuit Grayscale ultimately won. A sort of posthumous vindication, you see. A fleeting moment of glory in the relentless churn of the market.

Why Teucrium Is Betting on XRP

But why, one wonders, the sudden infatuation with XRP? Sal reveals that Teucrium has filed for a “Double XRP” ETF – a leveraged instrument designed for the discerning gambler. He confesses to a certain lack of enthusiasm for the usual suspects – Ethereum, Solana – finding them, perhaps, a little too… fashionable. But XRP? Ah, XRP has a mission. A noble quest to modernize cross-border payments and dethrone the antiquated SWIFT system. A truly heroic undertaking! (Or, at least, a potentially profitable one.)

Gilbertie praises Ripple’s professionalism and long-term vision – qualities one rarely associates with the crypto world. He appreciates their commitment to speed and efficiency, stating that “Anything that speeds up the system makes sense.” A profoundly insightful observation. Rather than attempting to compete directly with the giants for a standard XRP ETF, Teucrium has chosen a more specialized path, leveraging their expertise in derivatives to carve out a niche. A clever maneuver, one might concede. A little bit of David facing the Goliaths, though I suspect David had a slightly better understanding of slingshots. 😉

Read More

2025-07-23 20:42