Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ( OTC:GBTC ) spiked as much as 14.1% Tuesday as a panel of judges questioned the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's decision last June to reject Grayscale Investment's application for converting GBTC into a spot bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) exchange-traded fund, according to media reports. The upswing came even as bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) and the broader cryptocurrency market experienced selling pressure. The token slid 1.6% to $22.05K (as of 4:15 p.m. ET) after Jerome Powell signaled that interest rates will be higher for longer as inflation remains stubbornly high. Earlier, judges in the District of Columbia Court of Appeals in Washington pushed back against the SEC's decision as the regulator previously approved some surveillance deals to prevent fraud in bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) futures ETFs, which rely on the price of bitcoin, like spot funds, Reuters reported. Shortly after its proposed ETF got denied, Grayscale sued the SEC, after the agency felt that its product failed to meet requirements designed to prevent fraudulent acts and protect investors. Also in the works, FTX affiliate Alameda Research sued Grayscale over allegedly charging unfairly high fees and preventing Alameda from redeeming shares in GBTC and ETHE.
