Cryptocurrency-based exchange-traded funds (ETFs) remain prominent in the US, with VanEck’s latest filing focusing on Solana, the fifth-largest digital asset.
Following the announcement, Solana’s price surged by 7%, reaching $150.
Matthew Sigel, VanEck’s Head of Digital Assets Research, highlighted this development on X. He emphasized that the firm sees Solana as similar to Ethereum, describing it as an “open-source blockchain software designed to support various applications, including payments, trading, gaming, and social interactions.”
I am excited to announce that VanEck just filed for the FIRST Solana exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the US.
Some thoughts on why we believe SOL is a commodity are below.
Why did we file for it?
A competitor to Ethereum, Solana is open-source blockchain software designed to… pic.twitter.com/XwwPy8BXV2— matthew sigel, recovering CFA (@matthew_sigel) June 27, 2024
He also noted that, unlike Ethereum, Solana operates as a “single global state machine” without sharding or layer-2 networks.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved spot Bitcoin ETFs in January after a decade-long effort, affirming that Bitcoin is a commodity. Last month, the SEC reluctantly approved spot Ethereum ETFs but delayed their launch due to ongoing uncertainty about Ether’s status.
Solana’s classification remains uncertain. However, Sigel provided several reasons why VanEck considers it a commodity like Ether and Bitcoin.
“We believe the native token, SOL, functions similarly to other digital commodities such as #bitcoin and #ETH. It is utilized to pay for transaction fees and computational services on the blockchain. Like ether on the Ethereum network, SOL can be traded on digital asset platforms or used in peer-to-peer transactions.”
The news prompted an immediate response from SOL’s price, which rose by 7% in minutes. The asset had dropped to $135 amid a market-wide correction but climbed to $150 following the VanEck announcement.
