Wall Street could be in store for a deluge of crypto exchange-traded funds in 2025.
That’s according to senior ETF analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart – though specific cryptocurrencies’ fate will depend on the incoming SEC administration.
“We expect a wave of cryptocurrency ETFs next year, albeit not all at once,” Bloomberg ETF expert Balchunas said on X. The prediction comes off the back of record-breaking Bitcoin ETF fund flows.
Bitcoin ETFs have accumulated more than $129 billion in assets under management since launch, while Ethereum ETFs have attracted $15 billion and are enjoying 16 consecutive days of inflows.
Balchunas and Seyffart forecast a dual Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF, due to filings from Hashdex, Franklin Templeton, and Bitwise. Down the line, they are optimistic about Litecoin – due to the fact it’s a fork of Bitcoin and could be seen as a commodity by the SEC – and Hedera.
Some cryptocurrencies such as Ripple’s XRP and Solana’s SOL face longer approval times.
They will have to wait until the new SEC administration takes control “before being seriously considered,” Seyffart said.
President-elect Donald Trump has nominated crypto ally Paul Atkins to become SEC chairman. Even crypto-critics like him.
XRP was embroiled in a legal schism with the SEC since August 2020 when authorities claimed the company behind the asset, Ripple, had engaged in an unregistered securities offering. The firm won the drawn-out court case this year and was fined $125 million.
Meanwhile, Solana was among a plethora of crypto assets classified as a security by US authorities during a large-scale crypto crackdown in late 2023. The Solana Foundation disagreed with the decision at the time, saying they wanted to collaborate with authorities to “achieve legal clarity.”
Flipping gold
Bitcoin ETFs have shattered all sorts of records in 2024.
Their January 11 launch was one of the most successful in ETF history, and they have now surpassed gold.
Investors have deposited more than $129 billion or 1.2% of all US ETF funds into Bitcoin providers such as BlackRock and Fidelity. Meanwhile, gold holds $128 billion.
Balchunas noted that the numbers for Bitcoin include spot, levered, and futures – and excluding the latter two, gold is ahead by $5 billion.
“Either way, unreal we are even discussing them being this close at 11 months,” he said.
Pedro Solimano is a markets correspondent based in Buenos Aires. Got a tip? Email him at psolimano@dlnews.com.
