In a groundbreaking move, investment fund manager 3iQ Corp has announced plans to launch North America's first Solana (CRYPTO: SOL)-based exchange-traded product (ETP) in Canada.

What Happened: Toronto-based 3iQ said it filed a preliminary prospectus with the regulatory authorities in all of the provinces and territories of Canada.

Planning to launch the digital asset fund under the ticker QSOL, the company said that the aim was to give investors exposure to SOL's daily price movements, help in long-term capital appreciation, and reward them with staking yields.

While explaining more about the fund, Bloomberg analyst James Seyffart said that the investment avenue is a closed end fund, similar to Grayscale trust products.

He also reminded that 3iQ was the pioneer in launching Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) spot ETFs in Canada, even before the U.S. launched futures ETFs for the two assets.

Why It Matters: The move by 3iQ Corp aligns with the growing interest in cryptocurrency ETFs. Last month, ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood sounded optimistic about a Solana ETF in the U.S. following the approval of Ethereum ETFs.

Similarly, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse predicted the emergence of ETFs for cryptocurrencies like Solana, despite acknowledging the substantial regulatory approval process ahead.

However, not everyone shares this optimism. Rob Marrocco, the Vice President and Global Head of ETF Listings at Cboe, expressed skepticism regarding the near-term feasibility of ETFs based on cryptocurrencies like Solana due to the absence of a futures market for the asset.

Price Action: At the time of writing, SOL was exchanging hands at $134.07, down marginally by 0.08% in the last 24 hours, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.