VanEck Files for Solana ETF, Boosting SOL Price

Investment firm VanEck has submitted a SEC application to register an exchange-traded fund based on the cryptocurrency Solana (SOL).

According to the application, the VanEck Solana Trust will track the performance of the network’s native token using the Solana Benchmark Rate index from MarketVector Indexes. This benchmark represents aggregated data from five leading centralized trading platforms for SOL, as reviewed by the CCData Centralized Exchange Benchmark.

The product is expected to be listed on the Cboe BZX platform, though the company has yet to determine a ticker.

Explaining the proposal, VanEck’s Head of Research Matthew Sigel emphasized that SOL is a digital commodity akin to Bitcoin or Ethereum (ETH).

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

“We believe that the combination of high throughput, low fees, security, and a strong community atmosphere makes Solana an attractive option for an exchange-traded fund, offering investors access to a versatile and innovative open-source ecosystem,” he added.

Following the news, the price of SOL surged to around $150, with the token appreciating nearly 9% in a day (CoinGecko).

VanEck is also the issuer of one of the 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs approved by the SEC in January.

The company, along with other contenders, is awaiting the Commission’s decision on similar Ethereum-based products, which experts expect in early July.