Hacked SEC Twitter account falsely posts agency approved Bitcoin ETFs

Leo Schwartz

After the official Twitter/X account for the Securities and Exchange Commission tweeted the long-awaited approval for spot Bitcoin ETFs, Chair Gary Gensler <a href="https://twitter.com/GaryGensler/status/1744833049064288387">took</a> to his personal account on the social media platform to announce that the agency’s had been hacked.<div class="paywall-selector"></div><div class="paywall">



“The @SECGov twitter account was compromised, and an unauthorized tweet was posted,” he wrote. “The SEC has not approved the listing and trading of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded products.”



An agency spokesperson confirmed to Fortune in an email: “The SEC’s @SECGov X/Twitter account has been compromised. The unauthorized tweet regarding Bitcoin ETFs was not made by the SEC or its staff.”



Financial markets have been awaiting news of the agency approving spot Bitcoin ETFs, which would give U.S. investors the ability to trade the popular cryptocurrency in the form of shares on major exchanges. While all signs pointed to an approval coming at the close of markets on Wednesday, a surprise post from the official SEC account seemed to announce the green light.


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" data-src="https://content.fortune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GenslerScreenshot.png?w=1024&#038;h=817" alt="" class="lazyload wp-image-3763132" src="https://content.fortune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GenslerScreenshot.png?w=1024&#038;h=817" width="1024" height="817" original-width="1106" original-height="882"></figure>



The episode represents a boondoggle for a saga that has plagued the agency, which long fought the approval of the investment vehicle, citing the potential for market manipulation. After a <a href="https://fortune.com/crypto/2023/08/29/court-sides-with-grayscale-in-closely-watched-bitcoin-etf-case/">landmark victory</a> in August by crypto firm Grayscale, one of the prospective issuers for the Bitcoin ETF, in a lawsuit against the agency, the SEC began to reconsider the applications, which now included major players including <a href="https://fortune.com/company/blackrock/" target="_blank">BlackRock</a>.



Even after Gensler’s retraction, the SEC is likely to approve the applications as soon as Wednesday, when it is required to issue a decision for one of the prospective issuers, Cathie Wood’s ARK.



Twitter blew up with speculation over whether the errant tweet was the result of a scheduling error or a hack. Evidence seemed to point to the latter, with the SEC account still displaying recent “likes” of posts from crypto degen accounts like “Satoshi can’t believe his aim,” referencing the enigmatic founder of Bitcoin. The SEC account also <a href="https://twitter.com/FatManTerra/status/1744834963424387265">appeared</a> to tweet out “$BTC” and delete it right before its fake approval post. 



Others pointed out the irony that the long-dreaded market manipulation seemed to come from the SEC itself, or at least its cybersecurity practices. “I expect @SECGov Enforcement to send the SEC’s Social Media and Cybersecurity teams a Wells Notice any minute,” <a href="https://twitter.com/tyler/status/1744837588324667443">wrote</a> Gemini cofounder Tyler Winklevoss, who is currently embroiled in a lawsuit with the agency. 



The initial X post claiming the ETFs had been approved was deleted about 25 minutes after it went up.</div>

Long-awaited news on Bitcoin ETFs was thrown into chaos after the SEC Twitter account erroneously posted that they’d been approved.

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