SEC filings that mention bitcoin surged to record high last month

Companies filed a record amount of documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission last month that mentioned the word "bitcoin," according to data from The Block .

There were 1,074 filings that mentioned bitcoin in November, a 35.1% increase from the same month last year, according to The Block research analyst Rebecca Stevens. It's also a 32.6% rise from the previous high of 810 set in May of this year, she added.

SEC filings that mention "bitcoin."

October saw 527 filings mentioning bitcoin, making the November figure a 100% increase month-over-month. "But it's not really a fair comparison since November is a quarterly earnings report month, so you usually see increased filings when crypto-related companies are filing their 10-Qs and 8-Ks," Stevens said.

The higher frequency of bitcoin-related filings is a sign of more adoption and recognition of crypto in general, "but also shows a lot of firms are interested in the ETF hype," the analyst said.

The hype builds up

The frequency of the word "bitcoin" popping up in SEC filings reflects enthusiasm in the broader crypto market as the industry speculates about when the regulator could approve the first spot bitcoin ETF.  

"Almost 40 filings came from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, many of which were free writing prospectus' (FWPs), which seem to be tied to public statements made by Grayscale executives ahead of a possible G BTC +4.35% conversion," The Block's Frank Chaparro's said Tuesday in his biweekly The Scoop Newsletter .

"Regardless of the specifics, it shows that the world's largest crypto asset is showing up more in regulatory filings," he added. 

The SEC currently has 13 applications for spot bitcoin ETF, including ones from Franklin Templeton, Fidelity, BlackRock and Grayscale.