BlackRock, the leading issuer of spot Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETF), has poured cold water on notions that it might be issuing a similar ETF product for the fast-rising Solana blockchain soon. Two of the company’s top executives have confirmed the asset manager has no such plans in the near future.
The news comes as SOL is enjoying a stellar performance and is nearing its yearly high. While BlackRock might not be interested in a Solana ETF, other asset managers, including VanEck, have filed an application with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to that effect.
Solana is not mature enough
Samara Cohen, BlackRock CIO of ETF and Index Investments, said on Bloomberg TV that the firm will not venture into Solana ETF . This was in response to whether there will be a BlackRock Solana ETF soon. She said demand from clients and ‘investability’ are two major factors. She said:
“Not in the near term. We really look at the investability to see what meets the criteria, meets the bar, to be delivered in an ETF. For us, both between investability considerations and also what we hear from our clients, BTC and ETH definitely meet that bar, I think it will be a while before we see anything else.”
This statement is similar to those made by Robert Mitchnick, BlackRock Head of Digital Assets, at the Bitcoin Conference 2024. Mitchnick identified several reasons why a Solana ETF cannot be created yet. These include the track record of maturity, liquidity, and market cap. He commented:
“I don’t think we’re going to see a long list of crypto ETFs, If you think of bitcoin, today it represents about 55% of the market cap. ETH is at 18%. The next plausible investible asset is at, like, 3%. It’s just not close to being at that threshold or track record of maturity, liquidity, et cetera.”
However, not everyone shares this sentiment. Nate Geraci, president of ETF Store, disagreed with this view, noting that exchange-traded products for other digital assets like Solana are already traded in Europe. However, he admitted that it would take a major regulatory shift for this to happen.
SOL drops after nearing yearly high
Meanwhile, the comments surrounding the possibility of a Solana ETF might have dampened its recent rally. SOL is down more than 6% today after rising almost 10% the day before. The asset went from $182 on June 28 to $193.66 on June 29, but it has now fallen back to $181.84.
This volatility in price could also be connected to the general market decline after the US government moved about $2 billion in BTC to Coinbase, signaling a plan to dump BTC. The crypto market has been enjoying a rally prior based on Donald Trump’s speech at the Bitcoin Conference. Ironically, one of his promises was to ensure the US keeps all its Bitcoin.
Investors Bullishness on Solana (Source: CoinGecko)
Despite the recent decline, SOL remains one of the year’s best performers. The token is up 32% in the past 30 days and has appreciated 66% year-to-date. A recent survey by CoinGecko shows that most investors are bullish on the asset. One in four investors expects it will reach as high as $300 in this cycle. However, only 10.6% of respondents expect it to reach $1,000.
