The U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission open the filing of the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust for public comment. The move puts the Winklevoss brothers closer to approval to offer a bitcoin-based investment product and Bitcoin Trust shares for purchase. The Winklevoss brothers came to prominence on the tech scene during the launch of Facebook, causing a legal action against founder Mark Zuckerberg for stealing the initial idea behind the social media site. Brothers Tyler and Cameron have since settled the case for $65 million and have gone on to create Winklevoss Capital Management, an investment firm that provides seed money for startup companies. Sensing the financial opportunity looming in the bitcoin concept, the brothers launched an ETF in 2013, but gaining approval from the SEC has been a slow and rocky process. The SEC’s recent announcement is a welcome sign of progress for the new Winklevoss offering.

The Launch and Limbo

When the Winklevoss twins created their investment vehicle in 2013, they were sailing on the heightened expectations of an entirely new type of currency that promised anonymity in an age where every move and communication was traceable. The potential of bitcoin was in creating an economy in which people were able to fund a wide variety of enterprises without public visibility. However, the Securities and Exchange Commission foresaw a wealth of pitfalls in such a financial vehicle. When the Winklevoss brothers launched their bitcoin ETF, the regulatory agency went over the offering with a fine tooth comb to ensure that the investment was safe and legally viable. As a result, the ETF languished in a No Man’s Land of regulatory investigation for several years. Over that period of time, Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss made a number of changes to the trust, hoping to trigger a faster approval process. In the end, the regulatory wheels continued to move slowly, until the recent announcement of the opening of public comments, one of the required steps in the approval process.

The Struggles of a Cryptocurrency

Bitcoin endured a precipitous 60 percent fall in 2014 when the Mt. Gox exchange was hacked. An enormous amount of money was lost from the exchange, thereby proving the currency’s fundamental instability to the entire financial community. However, this event did not discourage the Winklevoss brothers, who continued to believe that the cryptocurrency would rival American Express and Citigroup in the future, and might even become a rock-solid investment like gold. As others paused to re-think their commitment to the bitcoin concept, the Winklevoss doubled down on their plans for a trust to enable investment using the currency as a basis.

The End Game

The Winklevoss brothers began the process of filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, choosing an exchange, the NASDAQ, and an appropriate symbol, “COIN.” After a 2-year delay, they decided to facilitate the process by changing to the BATS global exchange. They also increased the amount of the offering from $20 million to $65 million. The SEC answered with a called for public comments, which will allow approval to go forward.

Ever vigilant in finding the next expansion of technology, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss are again making their influence felt with this new investment vehicle on the financial scene. The venture’s success will depend on a variety of factors, not the least of which is the ability to assure the public in the company’s technological security.