SEC Moves Towards Approving Spot Solana ETF, Signaling Crypto Shift

Coin WorldThursday, Feb 6, 2025 9:44 pm ET
1min read

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken initial steps towards potentially approving a spot Solana ETF, signaling a shift in the regulatory landscape for cryptocurrencies. This development comes as multiple asset managers, including Grayscale, 21Shares, Bitwise, VanEck, and Canary Capital, have filed applications to list spot Solana ETFs in the U.S.

The SEC acknowledged Grayscale's 19b-4 filing for a spot Solana ETF, which is a notable step in the review process. The final deadline for Grayscale's application is around October 11, and the SEC has 45 days to review the application once published in the Federal Register, with possible extensions of up to 90 days.

Analysts predict that an approved spot Solana ETF could attract between $3 billion and $6 billion in net assets over the first year. Additionally, predictions market platform Polymarket estimates a 39% chance that a spot Solana ETF will be approved by the SEC before July 31.

In a separate development, Cboe BZX Exchange has filed forms for Canary Capital, WisdomTree, 21Shares, and Bitwise to list a spot XRP (XRP) ETF in the U.S. on February 6. This move comes amid an ongoing SEC appeal of the Ripple decision, which seeks to establish whether XRP should be classified as a security under Federal law.

The SEC has 45 days to review these applications, and the outcome will be crucial not just for XRP but for the broader ETF landscape as regulators continue to revise their approaches to digital assets.

Franklin Templeton Investments has also filed for a multi-asset crypto index ETF, which would offer exposure to the spot prices of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) in a single fund on the Cboe BZX Exchange. The index will be rebalanced and reconstituted quarterly, with a current weighting of 86.31% in BTC and 13.69% in ETH.

If approved, Franklin Templeton's ETF would provide investors with direct exposure to the spot prices of BTC and ETH, highlighting a growing institutional interest in digital assets. The SEC has not yet made a decision on the application.