Solana Staking ETF Baggage $12M in Wall Road Debut – Decrypt

The primary exchange-traded fund providing buyers publicity to Solana within the U.S. generated $12 million value of investments in its Wall Road debut on Wednesday, a REX Shares and Osprey Funds spokesperson informed Decrypt

The Rex-Osprey Solana + Staking ETF, which additionally presents buyers yield by staking not less than half of the fund’s property—one other first for U.S. markets—registered $33.6 million in buying and selling quantity, per Nasdaq information.

“[The ETF’s] day 1 buying and selling quantity was 82% lower than what one would’ve anticipated based mostly on the SOL/BTC market caps,” Bitwise Senior Funding Strategist Juan Leon informed Decrypt. “This lack of urge for food reveals institutional buyers are nonetheless very early of their understanding of SOL.”

Solana was lately altering fingers round $153, a 4.6% enhance over the previous 24 hours, in response to crypto information supplier CoinGecko. The asset’s worth has fallen 48% because it hit $293 in January, not lengthy after the debut of U.S. President Donald Trump’s meme coin.

Though the U.S. Securities and Change Fee is predicted to approve a number of crypto-focused ETFs this yr, Wednesday’s debut represents a brand new chapter “within the crypto ETF story,” Anchorage Digital co-founder and CEO Nathan McCauley mentioned in a press release.

As the one U.S. federally chartered digital asset financial institution, Anchorage is safeguarding the ETF’s digital property, whereas utilizing its platform to stake the Solana. McCauley mentioned that Anchorage’s innovation would hopefully translate to different merchandise.

“The launch of crypto staking ETFs marks a win for shoppers and a major step ahead in full entry to the crypto ecosystem,” he mentioned.

Anchorage started letting establishments stake Ethereum within the U.S. in 2022, not lengthy earlier than Ethereum transitioned to a proof-of-stake consensus mannequin. In April, BlackRock tapped Anchorage as a custodian to safeguard some funds for its Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs.

Anchorage’s companies mirror an everyday financial institution, nevertheless it’s allowed to carry cryptocurrencies on behalf of shoppers. So far as crypto ETFs within the U.S. go, many asset managers have chosen Coinbase as a custodian, together with Grayscale Investments and Bitwise.

Not like spot crypto ETFs authorised by the SEC final yr, the Rex-Osprey Solana + Staking ETF is structured underneath the Funding Firm Act. That distinction required a professional custodian, like Anchorage, to carry the fund’s property.

On Wednesday, the Rex-Osprey Solana + Staking ETF acquired off to a “wholesome begin,” Bloomberg ETF Analyst James Seyffart wrote on X, previously Twitter, pointing to $8 million in buying and selling quantity that the fund notched in its first 20 minutes.

Edited by James Rubin