Solana Spot ETF Approval Timing, Details in Full: SEC’s Decision Due Late January

Key Takeaways

• Bitwise, VanEck, 21Shares, Canary Capital and Grayscale have withdrawn their initial spot Solana ETF filings.
• Litecoin (LTC), Ripple (XRP) and other altcoin exchange-traded products are being proposed.
• The SEC is currently under the management of a newly appointed pro-crypto interim Chairman, Mark Uyeda.

Spot Solana (SOL) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) applications have seemingly hit a hurdle, as all five funds withdraw their applications from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Funds Withdraw, Grayscale Reapplies

The SEC was initially facing a Jan. 25, 2025, deadline to provide a majority of SOL ETF applicants with a response to their filings. However, in recent days, it’s been revealed that all five have withdrawn their applications.

Undeterred, Grayscale has already reapplied, seeking approval to convert the $134.2 million Grayscale Solana Trust into a spot ETF on New York Stock Exchange.

With the timeline now completely reset. Fund issuers may be waiting for all of Donald Trump’s governmental picks to take their seats and get to work on bringing the President’s crypto vision to life. Most importantly for crypto ETFs, this would mean waiting for Trump’s top SEC pick, Paul Atkins , to be confirmed as the new SEC Chair.

Solana ETFs?

With spot Ethereum ETFs launching on July 23, 2024, all eyes are on the top altcoin to see which one has the credentials to be the next spot crypto ETF.

While many consider Ripple (XRP) a strong candidate, several industry experts and Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse think SOL is the next logical choice.

However, due to numerous regulatory hurdles and ongoing court cases with the SEC, to determine how certain cryptos are classified, a spot SOL or spot XRP ETF may not happen anytime soon.

However, it may come in a different form. Nate Geraci, President of the ETF Store, recently suggested that a spot SOL ETF could be part of a combined spot ETF, packaged alongside BTC and ETH.

Initial Filings

Grayscale, Bitwise, VanEck, 21 Shares and Canary Capital all have submitted their spot Solana ETF applications in late 2024.

Under regulatory requirements, the SEC had 45 days to make an initial decision after accepting applications.

A flurry of applications hit the SEC’s desk, following news that crypto’s least-favorite regulator, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, would be stepping down from his role on Jan. 20. At the time, in his place, Donald Trump named pro-crypto candidate Paul Atkins his top choice to take over the SEC.

As per a “Solana ETF Approved in 2025?” contract on crypto betting marketplace Polymarket, bettors believe there’s an 85% chance they’ll be approved this year.

The hype hasn’t quite transferred to SOL’s price, which, much like the rest of the market, is experiencing a downturn. SOL is presently trading at $233.64 , down 7.72% in the past 24 hours.

Launch Conditions

The road to a spot SOL ETF will be bumpy. First, the SEC would have to reverse its lawsuits against Coinbase , Kraken  and Binance , in which it names Solana as one of the many unregistered securities sold by crypto exchanges.

Furthermore, no SOL-based futures products are trading on U.S. stock exchanges. Typically, a futures commodity needs to trade for 18 to 24 months before the SEC considers approving it as a spot product.

Presently, there are a few Solana-based exchange-traded products (ETPs) trading. These include the Grayscale Solana Trust ( GSOL ), the VanEck Solana exchange-traded note (ETN), and the 21Shares Solana (ETP).

Eyes on Solana

Arguably, the approval of spot ETH ETFs could be interpreted as a regulatory endorsement of broader crypto technologies and tokens, or at least a step in that direction.

As highlighted by Matrixport co-founder Daniel Yan , SOL could follow both BTC and ETH, positing that Solana is a better investment. Furthermore, SOL is undeniably popular among crypto users.

Seemingly, there’s plenty of appetite for a SOL ETF.

However, as Gensler highlighted , crypto ETFs, such as Ethereum, have to go through rigorous processes to be approved, and given the timeline, Solana ETFs could still be years out:

“Ethereum had been traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange futures for three-plus years. And the staff looked at that closely, and that was approved.”

Gensler said that the SEC’s role is to ensure that investors are protected with legally required disclosures and that exchanges are adequately regulated to prevent fraud, market manipulation, and other nefarious activities.

Whilst the SEC is seemingly warming to crypto, altcoins probably have a long way to go before trading as ETFs on U.S. exchanges. At best, the SEC could begin considering SOL fund applications in 2025.

However, this primarily depends on several major factors, including the fact that it is classified as an unregistered security, as per several lawsuits from the SEC regarding crypto exchanges.

SOL ETF Filings

Grayscale

According to  the first filing from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), Arca, Grayscale has joined Bitwise, VanEck, and others in lining up to have their spot Solana ETF applications approved.

The latest filing with the SEC seems to be the same as the first and would see Grayscale convert its existing Solana Trust, GSOL, into a spot ETF on NYSE Arca.

With some $134 million in assets under management (AUM), it would be a modest conversion compared to its Bitcoin (BTC) Trust, which carried around $30 billion in AUM at the time of conversion.

This has since dwindled to $21.22 billion as Grayscale’s spot BTC ETF has suffered almost endless outflows.

Hopefully, this won’t be the same for its Solana ETF.

Bitwise

Asset management firm Bitwise has filed to set up a statutory trust entity in Delaware for its Solana ETF application.

The preliminary step can be seen as a mark of confidence from the firm, as typically, such moves are made before companies file the necessary 19b-4 filing and S-1 registration forms for regulatory approval.

Bitwise joins VanEck, 21Shares and Canary Capital, who are also gearing up to launch Solana ETFs. The moves follow Bitwise’s bold S-1 registration for a Ripple (XRP) ETF in early October, last year.

Canary Capital

Digital asset manager Canary Capital has filed for a spot Solana ETF with the SEC.

As per the S-1 filing, Canary’s spot SOL ETF seeks to track SOL’s performance via the CF Solana Index. Canary Capital has not yet disclosed its chosen custodian or ticker symbol.

Canary Capital recently filed for a spot Ripple (XRP) ETF and a spot Litecoin (LTC) ETF.

VanEck

VanEck was the first fund to file for a SOL ETF. It did so way back in June 2024. Per the S-1 filing, the VanEck Solana Trust will directly hold SOL and list the ETF on the Cboe BZX exchange.

Franklin Templeton is reportedly also mulling the option.