Canada Launches First Spot Solana ETFs With Staking, Boosting SOL's Position

Spot Solana ETFs are exchange-traded funds that hold Solana (SOL) tokens directly, providing investors with real-time exposure to the asset’s market price. These ETFs are traded on traditional stock exchanges, offering a regulated financial product that eliminates the need for complex trading platforms or crypto wallets. The value of Solana ETFs is directly tied to the open market price of SOL, allowing investors to gain exposure to the blockchain’s performance without directly holding the asset. Unlike futures-based ETFs, which use derivative contracts to speculate on future prices, spot ETFs track the performance of the actual asset, providing a more transparent and direct reflection of SOL’s real-time supply and demand on the Solana blockchain.

On April 16, 2025, four spot Solana ETFs began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange, following approval from the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC). This move made Canada the first country to launch spot SOL ETFs with staking. The OSC granted approval to the spot Solana ETFs of four asset managers: 3iQ, Purpose, Evolve, and CI Financial. These funds hold SOL tokens, giving investors direct ownership of the asset, and are secured via institutional-grade cold storage custody. Each fund tracks a distinct Solana-related index, offering diverse strategies with onchain asset backing. The ETFs are designed for long-term investment, reflecting the issuers' strong belief in Solana’s future in decentralized finance (DeFi).

By incorporating staking, these spot Solana ETFs provide an active way for investors to earn returns in the cryptocurrency market within a regulatory framework and secure, institutional-grade custody services. The ETFs enable staking through a partnership with TD Bank, allowing the SOL they hold to actively support and secure the Solana network. In return, the network issues staking rewards, which can be passed on to investors. Since Solana typically offers higher staking yields than Ethereum, this structure may translate into greater potential returns for investors.

Staking in these ETFs may boost returns for investors by an estimated 2%-3.5% annually, in addition to the performance of the underlying SOL. The ETFs generate yield by working with staking partners that delegate up to 50% of the fund’s assets for staking. Staking rewards generated by the ETF are typically shared between shareholders and the fund manager, with the specific allocation varying depending on the ETF issuer. Management fees of these spot Solana ETFs vary from 0.15% to 1%, with some providers offering fee waivers during the initial launch phase. After two days of trading, the combined assets under management for the four ETFs total about $73.5 million.

Canada’s offering of spot Solana ETFs with staking is an innovative step, as existing SOL investment products, such as the crypto ETFs in Europe and the futures-based ETFs in the US, do not offer an opportunity to earn staking yield. Incorporating yield into a regulated crypto ETF structure addresses a long-standing demand from investors and asset managers interested in proof-of-stake (PoS) networks like Solana and Ethereum. As staking is central to these tokens’ value, its inclusion enables SOL ETFs to offer a passive income component, making them more appealing to traditional investors seeking income-generating opportunities. The OSC’s approval of the staking feature for spot Solana ETFs may boost SOL’s position. However, staking carries risks, such as potential losses from validator penalties (slashing) or network disruptions, which could affect returns.

Canada’s launch of Solana ETFs with staking provides alternative cryptocurrency investment choices for its investors and may serve as an example for other countries considering spot ETFs for cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin. Despite a subdued global macroeconomic climate, Canada’s regulators have taken a proactive stance, embracing innovation in the digital asset space. The greenlighting of Solana ETFs with staking reflects a maturing approach to crypto policy and signals confidence in alternative layer-1 networks. Meanwhile, in the United States, anticipation is building as the launch of Solana futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) on March 17, 2025, is seen as a stepping stone toward a US spot ETF. The SEC is currently reviewing 72 crypto-related ETF applications, including derivatives. The filings range from major cap altcoins to memecoins and include leveraged products and options. The outcome of Canada’s pioneering approach may offer valuable insights to regulators and could potentially influence the SEC’s decisions regarding these filings. However, the SEC’s stance may differ significantly from Canada’s due to structural and regulatory complexities within the US financial system. Unlike Canada’s more unified regulatory framework, the US divides oversight between multiple agencies, creating friction in crypto policymaking. Canada’s trailblazing move could nonetheless offer a valuable case study for US regulators. As markets await the SEC’s decisions, the key question remains whether Washington will follow Ottawa’s lead or chart its own course and a slower timeline for non-Bitcoin spot ETFs.