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(NEW YORK) — In a dispiriting sign of the times, barely more than a quarter of Americans say the American dream still holds true — about half as many as said so 13 years ago.

Defined as “if you work hard you’ll get ahead,” just 27% in a new ABC News/Ipsos poll say the American dream still holds, down sharply from 50% when the question first was asked in 2010. Eighteen percent now say it never held true, up from 4%.

The rest, 52%, say the promise used to hold true but no longer does, up 9 points. Taken together, 69% say the American dream does not hold true today, up 22 points. And that’s in comparison to a poll taken in the aftermath of the Great Recession.

Although pessimism about the American dream has grown across groups, the change is sharpest among young adults. Their view that the American dream still holds true has dropped by 35 points, from 56% in 2010 to 21% now.

That compares with a 24-point decline among those ages 30 to 64 and 12 points among those 65 and older.

Differences among other groups also are evident. The survey, produced by Langer Research Associates with fieldwork by Ipsos, finds that attitudes of Black Americans towards the concept of the American dream are notably pessimistic.

The share of Black people who say it still holds true has fallen by 34 points, to 21%, compared with a 22-point drop among those of other racial or ethnic backgrounds.

Indeed, 32% of Black people say the American dream never held true, which is up 23 points from 2010, compared with 16% of others, which is up 13 points.

Income also differentiates views. Among people with household incomes less than $50,000 a year, just 18% say the American dream still holds true. It’s 27% in the $50,000- to less-than-$100,000 bracket and 33% among those in $100,000-plus households.

There’s also a gap by education, which correlates with income. Among people who haven’t gone beyond high school, 22% say the American dream still holds true (down 25 points from 2010), compared with 40% of those with a postgraduate degree (down 19 points).

Partisan differences are muted: A third of Republicans and Democrats alike say the American dream still holds true, as do a quarter of independents. Declines since 2010 are largely consistent across these groups.

Economic attitudes, predictably, matter as well. Among those who rate the economy positively, 45% say the American dream still holds true, compared with 22% of those who say the economy is in bad shape.

And it’s 41% among those who say they’ve gotten better off financially since the start of Joe Biden’s presidency vs. 23% among those who are worse off.

METHODOLOGY – This ABC News/Ipsos poll was conducted online via the probability-based Ipsos KnowledgePanel® Jan. 4-8, 2024, in English and Spanish, among a random national sample of 2,228 adults. Partisan divisions are 25-25-41 percent, Democrats-Republicans-independents. Results have a margin of sampling error of 2.5 percentage points, including the design effect, for the full sample. Sampling error is not the only source of differences in polls.

The survey was produced for ABC News by Langer Research Associates, with sampling and data collection by Ipsos. See details on the survey’s methodology here.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — U.S. airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen on Thursday night escalated an ongoing conflict over a shipping route that holds significant implications for oil prices and inflation.

The military operation, undertaken in partnership with the United Kingdom, came in response to a monthslong series of attacks carried out by Iran-backed Houthi rebels on freight ships in the Red Sea.

Houthi Defense Minister Mohammed Nasser Al-Atefi said in a statement on Wednesday that the group would respond to the attack carried out by the U.S. and U.K.

The U.S. attack could cause a spike in oil prices and inflation if it sets off a wider escalation of the Israel-Gaza war, deepening supply chain woes and fueling price increases for many essential goods, analysts told ABC News. Oil prices surged 3% in early trading on Friday partly due to fear of such a scenario, they added.

The immediate impact of the attack appears notable but limited, analysts said, since many of the major shipping companies had already diverted their routes in response to the threat posed by the Houthis, analysts said.

“The absolute worst case scenario from a supply chain standpoint is if this escalates into a shooting war between the U.S. and Iran,” Jason Miller, a professor of supply-chain management at Michigan State University, told ABC News. “It would result in a massive increase in energy prices and if oil goes up, everything goes up.”

“Right now most carriers had already decided to reroute around the Red Sea, so this doesn’t change the dynamic there too much,” Miller added.

Since October, Houthi militias have launched over 100 attacks targeting at least 10 merchant vessels, according to a statement last month from the Pentagon.

The Houthis have targeted commercial ships traveling through the Red Sea as they approach the Suez Canal, which the U.S. Naval Institute says facilitates roughly 12% of global shipping traffic.

Major shipping companies MSC, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd, as well as British oil giant BP, previously responded to the attacks by diverting their ships to alternative routes.

Freight rerouted from the Suez Canal typically travels around the southern tip of Africa, extending the length of the trip by roughly 30%, Jason Miller, a professor of supply-chain management at Michigan State University, told ABC News.

The increased travel time has strained the supply of ships, since longer routes mean fewer ships are available to carry goods at any given time, Miller said. That bottleneck, he added, has driven up short-term rates known as spot prices, which companies negotiate for the transport of their goods.

Prices stand at roughly $6,000 for a 40-foot container ship, up from $2,000 a year ago, according to a recent report from S&P Global Commodity Insights.

While small businesses will likely bear higher import costs resulting from the jump in spot prices, large retailers like Walmart and Home Depot would not be significantly impacted because their shipping costs are dictated by previously established contracts, Miller said.

The U.S. attack on Yemen could expand the number of ships diverting from the Suez Canal, since insurance companies will be reluctant to cover damage incurred by a possible attack, Christopher Tang, a professor at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, who focuses on supply chains, told ABC News.

Oil tankers, especially, may want to avoid the risk of environmental disaster and worker injury, Tang added.

“The risk is just too high,” Tang said.

The crisis in the Red Sea is likely to have a marked effect on consumer prices in Europe but could also increase prices for a range of U.S. consumer products imported from countries in Southeast Asia, such as India and Vietnam, since those goods travel through the Suez Canal, some analysts said.

Still, some experts cautioned that the trade disruption so far could ultimately have little or no effect on U.S. prices, since shipping fees contribute a fraction of the costs related to a typical item.

An escalation of the Middle East conflict, however, would dramatically amplify the effect on oil prices and inflation, analysts said.

“That would be a mess,” Rob Handfield, a professor of operations and supply chain management at North Carolina State University, told ABC News.

In the event, for example, of a potential outcome that puts Israel in direct conflict with Iran, a major oil producer, the resulting price shock would make it more expensive to operate factories and transport goods. A wide array of consumer prices, in turn, would jump.

“If it escalates further, it would be a disaster,” said Tang, of UCLA.

 

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(WASHINGTON) — The Federal Aviation Administration announced it will take the significant step of increasing its oversight over Boeing and begin an immediate audit of Boeing’s production and manufacturing in the wake of the door plug blowing out of an Alaska Airlines flight last week.

The audit will “evaluate Boeing’s compliance with its approved quality procedures,” the agency said Friday.

The FAA said it will also assess the safety risks around delegated authority and quality oversight — specifically the Organization Designation Authorization program. Under ODA, certain aircraft certification process is delegated to manufacturers like Boeing.

The door plug for the fuselage of a Boeing 737 Max 9 fell off a few minutes after Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 took off from Portland International Airport on Jan. 5, depressurizing the cabin and exposing passengers to open air thousands of feet above ground. No one was seriously injured and the plane landed safely.

FAA Administrator Michael Whitaker said the agency is “exploring” the use of an independent third party to oversee Boeing’s inspections and quality system.

“It is time to re-examine the delegation of authority and assess any associated safety risks,” Whitaker said. “The grounding of the 737-9 and the multiple production-related issues identified in recent years require us to look at every option to reduce risk.”

The FAA outlined three points of increase oversight Friday: an audit involving the Boeing 737 Max 9 production line and its suppliers; increased monitoring of Boeing 737 Max in-service events; and an assessment of safety risks around “delegated authority and quality oversight and examination of options to move these functions under independent, third-party entities.”

The announcement came one day after the FAA said it would investigate Boeing after the door plug incident.

Boeing said in a statement Thursday about the investigation, “We will cooperate fully and transparently with the FAA and the NTSB on their investigations.”

ABC News has reached out to Boeing and Spirit Aerosystems, Boeing’s parts supplier, for comment on the increased oversight announced Friday.

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(NEW YORK) — Trading is set to begin for a new type of bitcoin fund that gives investors access to the crypto market without some of the hassle and fees of owning bitcoin outright.

Freshly approved by federal regulators, bitcoin ETFs — Exchange-Traded Funds — allow investors to buy an asset that tracks the price movement of bitcoin.

Fidelity, BlackRock and a host of other top investment firms have already begun to offer the product.

Bitcoin ETFs promise major potential gains but also notable downsides, presenting investors with a wide range of outcomes that will test their tolerance for risk, analysts told ABC News.

Investors could capitalize on a possible rise in the price of bitcoin if a flood of money into Bitcoin ETFs vaults the cryptocurrency into mainstream markets, they said.

However, investors should be prepared to weather the asset’s considerable volatility as well as uncertainty stemming from its association with issues of fraud and mismanagement in the wider crypto industry, they added.

“It’s going to be a volatile ride,” Bryan Armour, the director of passive strategies research at financial firm Morningstar, told ABC News. “You have to know that going in and make sure you’re okay with that.”

Some analysts said the new products could unleash a flow of investment and trigger a major spike in the price of Bitcoin, supercharging the most well-known and successful digital asset.

A Bitcoin ETF would elicit more than $14 billion of investment inflows within its first year on the market and as much as a 74% price increase over that period, Galaxy Digital, a crypto management and research firm, said in a report in October.

Some traditional institutions outside of the crypto arena have echoed that optimism, at least to a degree. Deutsche Bank forecasted price increases for bitcoin this year due in part to “greater institutional investment” in Bitcoin ETFs, according to a report reviewed by ABC News.

A run-up in price would follow some previous bull runs for bitcoin, including a rise of nearly 70% over the past six months. But the cryptocurrency has also undergone periods of major decline.

The price of bitcoin experienced a decline of at least 45 percentage points four times in the past five years, Armour said on Wednesday in a report for Morningstar.

The acceptance of Bitcoin ETFs among a wide swathe of investors could smooth out some of the volatility but that outcome may not come to pass, Armour told ABC News.

“If adoption becomes wider and the market becomes more mature, the price will become more stable,” Armour said. “For now, I don’t see it stabilizing.”

Setting aside their volatility, Bitcoin ETFs carry risks posed by the uncertain effects of fraud and mismanagement within the crypto sector, some analysts said.

The crypto industry entered this year bruised after a series of high-profile collapses and company scandals.

Sam Bankman-Fried, formerly one of the industry’s most prominent figures, could serve decades in prison after he was convicted on fraud charges in a federal trial. Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former CEO of major cryptocurrency exchange Binance, faces a jail sentence of up to 18 months after he pleaded guilty to federal charges of money laundering.

In a statement on Wednesday, Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler affirmed the agency’s decision to approve Bitcoin ETFs but offered a note of caution about cryptocurrency.

“We did not approve or endorse bitcoin,” Gensler said. “Investors should remain cautious about the myriad risks associated with bitcoin and products whose value is tied to crypto.”

James Butterfill, head of research at digital asset management firm CoinShares, rebuked concerns about bitcoin tied to potential manipulation or fraud.

The green light to trade Bitcoin ETFs gives them the “regulatory stamp approval,” Butterfill said.

Ultimately, investors considering Bitcoin ETFs should consider the role a potentially risky asset should play in their wider portfolio, analysts said.

“You shouldn’t allocate more to Bitcoin ETFs than you’re willing to lose,” Armour told ABC News.

Callie Cox, an analyst at the investment company eToro who tracks cryptocurrencies, said each individual should weigh Bitcoin ETFs within his or her own financial goals.

“You have your own hopes and dreams for your portfolio, so you should see how it fits,” Cox said.

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(WASHINGTON) — eBay will pay a $3 million criminal penalty for a campaign of harassment and intimidation undertaken by company executives that included anonymous home deliveries of a bloody pig mask, live insects and a funeral wreath, the Department of Justice said on Thursday.

The harassment targeted a Massachusetts couple for its online coverage of eBay, the DOJ said.

The San Jose, California, based online shopping firm was slapped with felony charges, including stalking, witness tampering and obstruction of justice, the DOJ added. The harassment took place roughly four years ago.

“eBay engaged in absolutely horrific, criminal conduct. The company’s employees and contractors involved in this campaign put the victims through pure hell, in a petrifying campaign aimed at silencing their reporting and protecting the eBay brand,” Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy said in a statement.

eBay did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

From 2019 to 2020, Jim Baugh, eBay’s former Senior Director of Safety and Security, and six other employees on eBay’s security team targeted the couple for its role in publishing a newsletter about issues of interest to eBay sellers, the DOJ said.

Senior executives at eBay grew frustrated over the tone and content of the newsletter, as well as comments posted beneath the newsletter’s articles, the DOJ added.

In response, the DOJ said, Baugh and the other eBay employees carried out a campaign of harassment to intimidate the couple and change the tone of the newsletter.

The campaign included sending anonymous and disturbing deliveries to the victims’ home, and sending private Twitter messages and public tweets criticizing the newsletter’s content, the DOJ said.

eBay employees traveled to Natick, Massachusetts, to surveil the victims and install a GPS tracking device on their car, the DOJ added.

When Baugh learned of a police investigation into the harassment, he made false statements to the police and his team deleted digital evidence, the DOJ said.

eBay terminated all of the employees involved after an investigation.

“The company cooperated fully and extensively with law enforcement authorities throughout the process. EBay does not tolerate this kind of behavior. eBay apologizes to the affected individuals and is sorry that they were subjected to this. EBay holds its employees to high standards of conduct and ethics and will continue to take appropriate action to ensure these standards are followed,” the independent special committee formed by eBay’s board of directors to oversee the company’s investigation said in a statement at the time.

Ultimately, seven eBay employees were convicted for their role in the harassment campaign, many of whom served prison sentences. Bough was sentenced to 57 months in prison in September 2022, the DOJ said.

In addition to the fine, eBay agreed to retain an independent corporate compliance monitor for three years and improve its compliance process, the DOJ said.

“Today’s settlement holds eBay criminally and financially responsible for emotionally, psychologically, and physically terrorizing the publishers of an online newsletter out of fear that bad publicity would adversely impact their Fortune 500 company,” Jodi Cohen, special agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Boston Division, said in a statement.

“It also puts in place some much needed checks and balances to ensure an overhaul of eBay’s corporate culture,” Cohen added.

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(NEW YORK) — Consumer prices rose 3.4% in December compared to a year ago, accelerating markedly from the previous month and defying a smooth path down to normal levels, a report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released on Thursday showed.

The Federal Reserve stands poised to dial back its inflation fight by cutting interest rates this year, but the latest inflation data could complicate those plans.

Interest rate cuts would ease borrowing payments for everything from credit cards to mortgages, but they risk stoking consumer demand and driving up inflation.

Prices last month rose faster than economists expected. The 3.4% rise of prices in December compared to a year ago sits more than a percentage point above the Fed’s target rate.

The price increases last month owed primarily to a rise in housing and energy costs, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said. Gas prices increased in December compared to a month prior, after having fallen considerably in November, the data showed.

Price increases for some food items continue to far outpace overall inflation. The price of beef rose nearly 9% in December compared to a year ago, while the price of crackers rose nearly 8% over that period. Prices for biscuits, rolls and muffins rose more than 4% in December compared to a year ago.

Some foods, however, declined in price. The costs of pasta and rice dipped slightly in December compared to a year ago. The prices of butter and breakfast sausage also declined over that period.

Core inflation, a measure that leaves out volatile food and energy prices, delivered better news. It climbed 3.9% in December compared to a year ago, cooling slightly from the previous month.

The inflation data arrives days after a jobs report for December showed hiring surpassed economist expectations, rebuking concern about a recession in the coming months.

The resilient jobs market aligns with optimism among many observers that the U.S. could avert an economic downturn, achieving a “soft landing” in which price increases return to normal levels while the economy continues to grow.

However, the robust economic performance may pose a challenge for the Federal Reserve as it tries to cool the economy and slow price increases.

Inflation stands well below last summer’s peak of over 9%, but remains well short of the Fed’s target rate of 2%.

The Fed risks a rebound of inflation if it cuts interest rates too quickly, according to some economists. An additional burst of economic activity for an already robust economy could hike demand and raise prices once again.

If the Fed maintains high interest rates for a prolonged period, however, the elevated borrowing costs could stifle business investment and consumer spending. Such an outcome could ultimately weigh on economic growth, corporate profits and employment.

Speaking at a press conference in Washington, D.C., last month, Fed Chair Jerome Powell urged caution about the outlook for the central bank’s effort to cool the economy and slow price increases.

“Inflation has eased from its highs and this has come without the significant increase in unemployment. That’s very good news,” Powell said.

“But inflation is too high, ongoing progress in bringing it down is not assured, and the path is uncertain,” he added.

Many market observers are expecting interest rate cuts as soon as a Fed meeting in March. As of last week, markets put the probability of a rate cut in March at 75%, said Ellen Zentner, chief U.S. economist and managing director at Morgan Stanley.

However, observers holding such expectations “may be in for a disappointment,” Zentner wrote last week, citing strong job gains that allow the Fed to keep rates high without fear of an imminent recession.

The cushion affords Fed policymakers “room to watch and wait,” Zentner added.

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(WASHINGTON) — The Department of Transportation has announced $623 million in grants to support electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure across the country.

“We’re at a moment now where the electric vehicle revolution isn’t coming, it is very much here,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told reporters.

The grants will support 47 projects in 22 states and Puerto Rico, with an emphasis on rural areas and underserved communities. The funding will also lead to the construction of about 7,500 EV charging ports.

The decision comes as the Biden administration is setting a goal of installing 500,000 chargers nationwide by 2030. Sales of EVs have been rising but at a slower rate than past years, with consumers citing high vehicle prices and poor charging infrastructure for the lukewarm response to electric vehicles.

“This charging infrastructure is making sure that everyone from the local business owner to a freight truck operator can conveniently and reliably get where they need to go,” said Shailen Bhatt, the administrator of the Federal Highway Administration.

The projects include $10 million in funding for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to build charging stations for people living in multi-family housing in disadvantaged and rural communities.

Another $15 million will go to the Maryland Clean Energy Center to build nearly 90 EV charging stations across the state at locations which may include Coppin State University, a historically Black university in Baltimore.

The County of Contra Costa in Northern California will also receive $15 million to build chargers at branches of the county’s local library system.

Energy Northwest will receive $15 million as well to install chargers across western Washington State and northern Oregon.

The Chilkoot Indian Association in the Alaskan Panhandle town of Haines will receive $1.4 million to build an EV charging station in the town. Haines, which touts thousands of visitors a year, says its one of the few in the region that is connected by road to Canada and the Alaska Highway.

“As a product of America’s industrial Midwest, I take very personally the importance of the fact that America led the world in the automotive revolution,” said Buttigieg on Wednesday. “We’re very much at the point of needing to assess whether [EVs] will, in fact, be made in America by American workers and whether the benefits will reach all Americans. President Biden’s policies are about making sure that the answer to both of those questions is yes.”

The funding for the grants comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal’s $2.5 billion discretionary grant program for charging and fueling infrastructure.

According to the Department of Transportation, since President Joe Biden took office, the number of electric vehicle models available to consumers has doubled, and by the end of the year, they expect it to double again. EV sales have quadrupled — 1.4 million were sold last year, making up about 9% of all passenger vehicle sales. More than four million EVs are on the roads.

Public charging ports have grown by about 70% and private companies have announced more than $155 billion in investments in EVs and the battery supply chain.

There are currently 170,000 chargers nationwide and the government is on track to meet Biden’s 2030 goal, Ali Zaidi, the White House national climate advisor, told reporters Wednesday.

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(NEW YORK) — Policymakers will pay close attention to the release of price data on Thursday as the Federal Reserve weighs dialing back its inflation fight with a series of interest rate cuts.

The Fed expects to slash rates later this year, which would ease borrowing payments for everything from credit cards to mortgages.

The central bank’s ultimate approach, however, will depend on the course of inflation, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said last month. The latest data will offer a glimpse at what that path could be.

Economists expect prices to have risen 3.2% in December compared to a year ago. That figure would stand more than a percentage above the Fed’s target rate and mark a slight acceleration from the previous month.

Core inflation, a measure that leaves out volatile food and energy prices, is expected to deliver better news.

Economists expect core inflation to have climbed 3.8% in December compared to a year ago, which would amount to a slight cooldown from the previous month.

The rate decision arrives days after a jobs report for December showed hiring surpassed economist expectations, rebuking concern about a recession in the coming months.

The resilient jobs market aligns with optimism among many observers that the U.S. could avert an economic downturn, achieving a “soft landing” in which price increases return to normal levels while the economy continues to grow.

However, the robust economic performance may pose a challenge for the Federal Reserve as it tries to cool the economy and slow price increases.

Inflation stands well below last summer’s peak of over 9%, but remains well short of the Fed’s target rate of 2%.

The Fed risks a rebound of inflation if it cuts interest rates too quickly, according to some economists. An additional burst of economic activity for an already robust economy could hike demand and raise prices once again.

If the Fed maintains high interest rates for a prolonged period, however, the elevated borrowing costs could stifle business investment and consumer spending. Such an outcome could ultimately weigh on economic growth, corporate profits and employment.

Speaking at a press conference in Washington, D.C., last month, Fed Chair Jerome Powell urged caution about the outlook for the central bank’s effort to cool the economy and slow price increases.

“Inflation has eased from its highs and this has come without the significant increase in unemployment. That’s very good news,” Powell said.

“But inflation is too high, ongoing progress in bringing it down is not assured, and the path is uncertain,” he added.

Many market observers are expecting interest rate cuts as soon as a Fed meeting in March. As of last week, markets put the probability of a rate cut in March at 75%, said Ellen Zentner, chief U.S. economist and managing director at Morgan Stanley.

However, observers holding such expectations “may be in for a disappointment,” Zentner wrote last week, citing strong job gains that allow the Fed to keep rates high without fear of an imminent recession.

The cushion affords Fed policymakers “room to watch and wait,” Zentner added.

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(NEW YORK) — Spicy condiments from spreads to sauce have been dubbed a top food trend of 2024, but one brand is alerting consumers to toss out some of its products, as they could be dangerous for anyone with a wheat allergy.

Vesta Fiery Gourmet Foods, Inc. issued a voluntary recall on Monday for five of its bottled hot sauces with varying degrees of heat, as they contain “undeclared wheat.”

The Raleigh, North Carolina-based food manufacturer shared the news in a company announcement posted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration website on Tuesday.

The recall impacts 1.5-ounce glass jars of Benny T’s Vesta hot sauces, including Benny T’s Vesta Ghost, Benny T’s Vesta Hot, Benny T’s Vesta Reaper, Benny T’s Vesta Scorpion and Benny T’s Vesta Very Hot.

“On 1/4/24 the firm was notified by the North Carolina Depart of Agriculture and Consumer Services that the label does not state the flour used is a wheat flour,” the company stated in its recall announcement, noting the “people who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to wheat run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume these products.”

Each of the five hot sauces in question have a use by date of December 2024 and were distributed nationwide between Oct. 1, 2023, to Jan. 4, 2024.

Click here for the full product details and label information of the affected products.

According to Vesta, the recalled products were packaged in glass jars and sold “primarily online, in retail stores and deli cases located throughout the United States.”

As of time of publication, no illnesses have been reported.

Consumers who have may have purchased these products are urged not to consume them or to discard the product.

Consumers with questions may contact Chris Tuorto at 919-656-7688, Monday – Friday, 8AM – 9PM EST.

A representative for Vesta Fiery Gourmet Foods did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.

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(NEW YORK) — The Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday gave its approval for some Bitcoin ETFs, just a day after a fake post on the agency’s account on X made a similar announcement and sent the value of Bitcoin soaring.

The price of Bitcoin vaulted skyward on Tuesday afternoon after the SEC appeared to deliver a major breakthrough for the cryptocurrency.

Minutes later, SEC Chair Gary Gensler punctured the euphoria, saying on X that a hacker had commandeered the agency’s account and sent out a fake message. The price of Bitcoin plummeted.

Some analysts say Bitcoin ETFs — Exchange-Traded Funds — could bring tens of billions of dollars of investment this year and catapult the price of Bitcoin.

In a statement on Wednesday, Gensler confirmed the decision but offered a note of caution about cryptocurrency.

After announcing that the SEC had “approved the listing and tradition” of some Bitcoin ETFs, Gensler added: “We did not approve or endorse bitcoin. Investors should remain cautious about the myriad risks associated with bitcoin and products whose value is tied to crypto.”

A Bitcoin ETF allows investors to buy into an asset that tracks the price movement of Bitcoin, while avoiding the inconvenience and risk of purchasing the crypto coin itself. But critics warn the investment product could do harm to investors exposed to the volatility and uncertainty of crypto.

Here’s what to know about Bitcoin ETFs and what’s at stake in their potential approval:

What is a Bitcoin ETF?

A Bitcoin ETF uses a decades-old trading method as a means of easing investment in digital assets.

An ETF amounts to a bucket of securities that gives investors a way to bet that an underlying asset will increase in price without purchasing that asset.

For instance, an ETF for gold allows individuals and institutions to put money on the price movement of the precious metal rather than buy, lug and store the physical item.

A Bitcoin ETF, in turn, gives investors access to the cryptocurrency market without facing the technical impediments and fees associated with navigating a crypto exchange.

Traders could find Bitcoin on traditional trading platforms and markets that many of them find trustworthy, assuaging concern about relatively young and scandal-ridden crypto technology.

Top investment firms like Fidelity and BlackRock are set to offer Bitcoin ETF products if they gain federal approval.

While nearly 90% of U.S. adults say they’ve heard at least a little about cryptocurrency, three-quarters say they aren’t confident about the safety and trustworthiness of current means for investing in the products, a Pew survey in April found.

What will happen after Bitcoin ETFs are made available?

Some analysts say the new products could unleash a flow of investment and trigger a major spike in the price of Bitcoin, supercharging the most well-known and successful digital asset.

A Bitcoin ETF would elicit more than $14 billion of investment inflows within its first year on the market and nearly $40 billion by the end of the third year, according to Galaxy Digital, a crypto management and research firm.

Standard Chartered Bank, a U.K.-based lender, offered a more bullish assessment, saying the financial instrument could induce as much as $100 billion worth of inflows by the end of this year, crypto outlet CoinDesk reported on Tuesday.

Under such a scenario, the price of Bitcoin could reach near $200,000 by the end of 2025, more than quadrupling the current value of the crypto coin, Standard Chartered Bank said, according to CoinDesk.

The price of Bitcoin has jumped nearly 70% over the past six months, in part due to anticipation of a surge if the Bitcoin ETF gains approval.

Critics of the financial instrument, however, say it could wreak significant damage to investors due to the volatility of Bitcoin as well as its potential use in illicit activities.

Dennis Kelleher, the CEO of nonprofit transparency group Better Markets, co-authored a letter to an SEC official last week warning of significant risk posed by the pending approval.

“It would be a grave if not historic mistake almost certainly leading to massive investor harm if the SEC approves the pending rule changes,” Kelleher wrote.

He added, “The massive and unrelenting fraud and manipulation in the bitcoin market means that approving these products would expose those investors to the very harms that the SEC exists to prevent.”

Why does this matter?

The crypto industry entered this year bruised after a series of high-profile collapses and company scandals.

Sam Bankman-Fried, formerly one of the industry’s most prominent figures, could serve decades in prison after he was convicted on fraud charges in a federal trial. Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former CEO of major cryptocurrency exchange Binance, faces a jail sentence of up to 18 months after he pleaded guilty to federal charges of money laundering.

Government approval for a Bitcoin ETF injects a much-needed jolt of good news for the ailing sector. But, as some critics fear, the financial product could widen the reach of crypto and pose further risk.

“We believe retail investors should wait to see whether these products can garner enough traction to see the light of day — let alone see convincing performance,” Manan Agarwal and Sabeeh Ashhar, analysts with financial services firm Morningstar, wrote in August.

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