SEC Clears the First 3x Bitcoin and Ether Funds, but Trading Still Awaits Registration
The SEC approved a Cboe BZX rule change clearing six 3x futures-based products from Volatility Shares, including the first triple-leveraged Bitcoin and Ether funds, but the funds still need their registrations declared effective before they can trade.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved a Cboe BZX Exchange rule change on October 2, 2026, clearing the way to list what would be the first triple-leveraged (3x) Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded products in the United States. The order, Release No. 34-106577, covers six futures-based products from Volatility Shares' VS Trust. Trading cannot begin yet.
Why it needed approval: Cboe's generic listing standards for commodity-based trusts exclude products that target a multiple of a benchmark's return. Leveraged funds therefore need a product-specific rule change, which Cboe BZX filed in August.
The six funds: Bitcoin, Ether, gold, silver, crude oil and natural gas. A preliminary prospectus filed August 17 proposes the symbols BITH for the Bitcoin fund and ETHK for the Ether fund, and it is marked subject to completion. The crypto products were approved in the same bundle as the four commodity products.
How they work: none of the funds will hold physical Bitcoin, Ether, metal or oil. They use regulated futures contracts, and the Bitcoin and Ether funds track CME Group futures prices based on first- and second-month contracts, with cash and cash equivalents as collateral or margin. Each fund targets three times the daily performance of its benchmark, before fees and expenses.
Legal structure: the SEC classifies the products as Commodity-Based Trust Shares. Although their names include "ETF," they are not regulated as investment companies under the Investment Company Act of 1940.
What happens next: the order approves the exchange's rule, not the funds' registration. Each fund still needs its separate Form S-1 registration statement declared effective by SEC staff before shares can trade, and no launch date has been disclosed.
The sponsor: Volatility Shares previously launched the first 2x Bitcoin ETF (BITX) and the 2x Ether ETF (ETHU). Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas called the approval a "big win" for the firm.
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