New US SEC regulations clear barriers, and a new round of crypto ETF feast will be launched

The Zhitong Finance App notes that asset management companies are preparing to launch cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs). They hope to take advantage of the growing popularity of digital assets while also taking advantage of the relaxation of regulatory requirements to speed up the launch of related products.

The US Securities and Exchange (SEC) announced updated ETF standards last week, which may encourage demand for exchange-traded products linked to a range of cryptocurrencies, from solana to dogecoin.

ETFs surrounding more traditional cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ether were launched in 2024 based on previous rules, which had stricter standards for issuers and exchanges. There are 21 ETFs in the US that hold Bitcoin or Ether, or both, and dozens of new products linked to other cryptocurrencies have filed applications with the SEC.

Analysts said they expect the first products approved under the new rules — possibly ETFs linked to cryptocurrencies Solana and XRP — to launch in early October. Steven McLurg, founder of Canary Capital Group, a digital asset management company that designed and launched ETFs, said, “We have now submitted about a dozen applications to the SEC, and more are about to be submitted. We are all preparing for a wave of product launches.”

Since the SEC first announced the proposed new listing standards in July, companies have scrambled to update new product application documents and respond to specific comments and questions from the SEC.

Three anonymous informants said the last wave of revisions could be submitted before the end of this week. Teddy Fusaro, president of crypto asset management company Bitwise, said: “These application documents have gone a long way in the review process. These are the rules we've been looking forward to.”

The SEC voted last week to adopt new listing standards, removing the requirement for separate regulatory review of each crypto ETF application, and allowing products that meet pre-determined standards to be launched without a lengthy case-by-case approval process.

Industry insiders say this will reduce the approval time for new crypto products from the previous maximum of 270 days to 75 days or less. Jonathan Gross, partner at DGIM Law, said that the fourth quarter of 2025 is becoming a boom period for crypto ETF issuers.

Grayscale Investments took the lead and launched the new Grayscale CoinDesk Crypto 5 ETF less than 48 hours after the SEC approved the conversion from a private equity fund to a listed traded fund last week. This Grayscale ETF holds Bitcoin and Ether (there are already spot ETFs with these two cryptocurrencies) as well as XRP, Solana, and Cardano.

Grayscale CEO Peter Mintzberg said the approval of its new ETF reflects “open market access, regulatory clarity, and product innovation” advocated by Grayscale.

To benefit from the new, faster process, an ETF must meet at least one of the three main criteria. If the cryptocurrency on which the proposed ETF is based is already traded in a regulated market or has a futures contract regulated by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and traded for at least 6 months, then it is eligible. Alternatively, if there is another ETF linked to that cryptocurrency and invests at least 40% of its assets in the cryptocurrency itself (not options or swaps), then the proposed ETF has a chance of getting approved.

Kyle Da Cruz, head of digital asset products at asset management company VanEck, said: “Not all of our current applications are eligible. The next step is to talk to our lawyers to see which products can continue to advance and how quickly they will be brought to market.” What's unclear is how much interest investors are in dozens of crypto ETFs linked to less well-known cryptocurrencies and how they will fit into investors' portfolios.

Da Cruz said, “There will be a large number of cryptocurrencies that many people have never heard of. Unlike Bitcoin, which takes years to become known, these cryptocurrencies will take weeks or months to provide investor education in this area.”