The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has paused Nasdaq's conditional approval to list cash-settled bitcoin index options (ticker QBTC) and will reconsider the decision. This action follows a legal challenge from CME Group, which argues that bitcoin is a commodity and, as such, options tied to its value fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), not the SEC's authority. The SEC's order keeps the approval frozen and sets an August 24 deadline for interested parties to submit statements.