The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed making a decision on whether it will approve a proposed ETF that would hold Polkadot’s native cryptocurrency.
The SEC has extended its decision date to June 11, according to an April 24 filing. Currently, the agency is reviewing around 70 other ETF proposals. This is just a month after Nasdaq applied to list Grayscale’s Polkadot Trust on February 24.
In a recent tweet on April 21, Eric Balchunas, an analyst at Bloomberg, said, “Asset managers are pitching ETFs for everything from XRP, Litecoin and Solana to Penguins, Doge and 2x Melania and everything in between.”
Grayscale has already rolled out several crypto funds, including spot Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) ETFs. The company is trying to get more ETFs approved, like one tied to Polkadot. The approval process has gotten tougher, as the SEC reviews each fund thoroughly.
A new ETF focused on Polkadot would provide an investment option for people looking to gain exposure to the Polkadot blockchain, which launched in 2020.
According to CoinMarketCap, Polkadot’s token, DOT, has a market cap of about $6.7 billion, making it one of the biggest altcoins in the market.
In addition to Grayscale’s filings, other asset managers, including 21Shares, are also waiting to launch their own Polkadot ETFs.
This is following a report by Coinbase, which stated that over 80% of large investors desire to invest more in crypto during 2025.
However, there are some experts who believe that although most individuals desire Bitcoin and Ether ETFs, there may not be as much demand for altcoin ETFs such as those for Polkadot.
The SEC has been dragging its feet in approving these products because it is worried about market manipulation and investor protection. But that is likely to change.
The recently sworn-in SEC Chairman Paul Atkins is seen as more open to revisiting the regulatory environment for digital assets. Under his leadership, the SEC has withdrawn or delayed a number of cases against cryptocurrency firms.
Also Read: Bitwise Files to Launch First NEAR ETF in the U.S.
