Yahya 
Crypto enthusiast and the trader on fast money, Brian Kelly has left the crypto community all bated as he points to Solana (SOL) as the next cryptocurrency set to be approved for an exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the United States. This bold prediction came after a talk show Fast Money on May 22 , one day before the SEC was about to come up with a verdict on the proposed spot Ether (ETH) ETF.
“The trade now is, who’s next,” Kelly posed during the show. “You’ve got to think about Solana as probably the next one. Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana are probably the big three for this cycle.”
Industry Reactions
However, not everyone shares Kelly’s optimism about Solana’s potential for an ETF. Nate Geraci, the president of The ETF Store, pointed out that the chances of getting a spot Solana ETF will remain a pipe dream until at least one Solana futures contract starts trading on the CME or until there is clear legal precedence set for crypto products in the country. At the moment, CME and Cboe are the only ones operating bitcoin futures while all other cryptocurrencies are yet to be approved in the United States.
Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart expressed similar views to Geraci’s wherein the development of a distant future trading market will probably happen “in a couple of years” after the origin of an institutionalized Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Seyffart also pointed out that a spot Solana ETF would see more demand than other digital assets outside of Bitcoin and Ether.
Regulatory Hurdles
Despite the potential demand, Seyffart cautioned that regulatory challenges could impede Solana’s ETF prospects. The SEC has previously flagged Solana as a security in lawsuits involving Coinbase and Kraken, which could complicate future applications. Gary Gensler and the SEC’s stance on Solana’s security status adds another layer of complexity to the issue.
In contrast, Cinneamhain Ventures partner Adam Cochran believes that either Litecoin (LTC) or Dogecoin (DOGE) would be more likely to receive ETF treatment next. “Much lower demand, but cleaner paths,” Cochran commented, noting that both Litecoin and Dogecoin operate on a proof-of-work consensus mechanism similar to Bitcoin.
The Road Ahead
Despite differing opinions, the interest in Solana continues to grow. Recently, multi-trillion-dollar asset management company Franklin Templeton favorably mentioned Solana and its co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko, which has prompted debates about increasing the chances of the company’s application for Solana ETF. Moreover, Bitwise’s CIO, Matt Hougan, stated that Solana in his opinion will be the “crypto asset of 2024” and has also endeavored real use cases onnetinet that could be of interest to institutions.
As the debate rages on, the cryptocurrency community will be observing and waiting for the next move of the SEC, and any other measures that will likely open doors for new ETFs linked to other digital assets.