SEC Acknowledges Grayscale’s Solana ETF Filing, Hinting at Potential Regulatory Sea Change

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is acknowledging crypto asset management firm Grayscale’s bid to create an exchange-traded fund (ETF) for the smart contract platform Solana (SOL).

In a new thread on the social media platform X, Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart says the SEC formally acknowledging the bid is noteworthy because the regulatory agency had previously rejected it.

“UPDATE: SEC just acknowledged the Grayscale Solana 19b-4. This is actually newsworthy because the SEC had refused to do this in recent filing attempts for SOL.”

ETFs allow traders to expose themselves to assets such as precious metals and crypto without having to actually purchase them. The SEC approved Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH)-based ETFs in 2024.

According to senior Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, the acknowledgment is a small step in the right direction as the SEC under former Chair Gary Gensler instructed the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) to withdraw its application for a Solana ETF.

“Notable because this is the first time an ETF filing tracking a coin that had previously been called a ‘security’ has been acknowledged by [the] SEC.

Only six weeks ago the [Gensler]-led SEC told CBOE to withdraw their Solana 19b-4. So we are now in new territory, albeit just a baby step, but seemingly the direct result of leadership change.”

In December, the SEC shot down all SOL-based ETF applications before Gensler resigned from his position prior to the inauguration of President Donald Trump. At the time, Balchunas predicted the firms would reapply after the regime change.

Seyffart goes on to note the SEC changing its tune on Solana might fare well for crypto firms facing lawsuits where the regulatory body claims SOL qualifies as a “security.”

The final deadline for Grayscale’s application would be around October 11th, according to Seyffart.

Solana is trading for $193.37 at time of writing, a 1.3% increase during the last 24 hours.

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