Asset manager WisdomTree overseeing $113 billion in assets, has filed to establish a trust entity in Delaware as a preliminary step toward launching an XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) exchange-traded fund (ETF).
What Happened: If successful, the ETF would track the price of XRP, the sixth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, and join a growing list of applications for crypto ETFs, which are reshaping institutional access to digital assets.
The filing follows similar moves by Bitwise and Canary Capital, who are also seeking approval for XRP ETFs.
WisdomTree's proposed XRP ETF is part of a wave of filings from investment firms aiming to provide U.S. investors with easier access to cryptocurrency markets.
Last week, Bitwise submitted an S-1 registration statement for a Solana ETF, signaling a shift toward diversified crypto ETF products.
However, XRP's journey to becoming an ETF-backed asset faces significant regulatory hurdles, given Ripple's ongoing legal battles with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Ripple Labs, the issuer of XRP, has been embroiled in a legal dispute with the SEC, which accuses the company of selling XRP as an unregistered security.
Although Ripple secured a partial victory in 2023, ruling that retail XRP sales did not violate securities laws, the SEC has appealed.
This regulatory uncertainty complicates the path to ETF approval for XRP.
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Why It Matters: Brad Garlinghouse, Ripple's CEO, remains optimistic about the inevitability of an XRP ETF despite these challenges.
"Since funds holding Bitcoin were first approved in January, $17 billion has flowed into the fastest-growing ETF in history," Garlinghouse said, emphasizing the growing appetite for crypto ETFs among institutional investors.
WisdomTree's filing follows a growing trend highlighted by 21Shares' recent application for a spot XRP ETF, the 21Shares Core XRP Trust, to be listed on the Cboe BZX Exchange.
21Shares' filing comes amid the SEC's legal scrutiny of Ripple, with accusations that Ripple raised $1.3 billion through unregistered XRP sales.
The demand for crypto ETFs comes as the market anticipates clearer regulations and broader adoption of digital assets.
Industry experts, like Nate Geraci, President of the ETF Store, described Bitwise's move to file for an XRP ETF as "strategic," despite legal challenges.
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