Issuers pile more crypto ETF plans

This is a segment from the Forward Guidance newsletter. To read full editions, subscribe.

---

We’ve rounded up the myriad of crypto ETF plans issuers are dreaming up, and launching.

The proposals continue to move beyond ones focused on solana, XRP and litecoin. 

An update from yesterday: A 19b-4 filing from Nasdaq signals Grayscale Investments’ intent to offer a Polkadot ETF. 21Shares put out a similar proposal a few weeks back. 

Polkadot (DOT) has a market cap of nearly $7 billion, ranking it 26th among crypto assets.  

The filing is not a proposal for Grayscale to convert one of its existing trusts to an ETF wrapper, like it had done with its bitcoin and ether products. That’s because it does not yet have a trust investing in DOT.  

I previously wrote about how Grayscale historically first goes with private placement launches for accredited investors before obtaining public quotations for unrestricted shares and making the products SEC-reporting companies. The conversion to an ETF is the final step. 

Grayscale skipped the initial steps upon filing for a Cardano ETF. Speaking of that product, the SEC acknowledged it in a Monday filing, noting the agency would solicit comments on the proposal. 

The thought is that Grayscale (despite not returning requests for comment) must feel it can take these shortcuts given the evolving regulatory environment.

This comes after Nasdaq late last week filed to list shares of Canary Capital’s proposed HBAR ETF, which hold Hedera’s native cryptocurrency. This 19b-4 filing comes a few months after the company submitted an S-1 for the product in November.

So, the momentum around altcoin ETF filings has not changed from when we last checked in. The next one we’ll see is anyone’s guess.

---

Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

• The Breakdown: Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily.
• 0xResearch: Alpha in your inbox. Think like an analyst.