When JPMorgan throws out numbers like $3 billion to $6 billion in potential Solana ETF inflows for 2025, it makes the crypto natives — not just the haters — jump out of their seats.
Particularly those in Asia, where there’s a soft corner for Solana.
The altcoin has a devoted following in places like India and Indonesia, where crypto adoption leads the global charge, driven by a growing base of developers backing the blockchain.
Once a memecoin playground and hated by TradFi for it, Solana saw its token rise from $8 post-FTX collapse to an all-time high of $263 after Donald Trump’s comeback.
It now has Wall Street watching. But here is the big question: does TradFi now want a piece of the action with all this talk of Solana ETFs?
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Unanswered questions
A Solana ETF isn’t even approved in the US yet.
Four players –– VanEck, 21Shares, Canary and Bitwise –– have their applications in, but approval is far from certain. “The devil is in the details,” says Titus Capilnean, vice-president of go-to-market at Web3 firm Civic.
Staking rewards — whether they’ll be allowed in the ETF and who gets them — are among the unanswered questions making the SEC’s decision anything but straightforward, especially since there is no crypto-specific law to define the process.
The SEC’s past reluctance towards Bitcoin and Ether ETFs melted away under legal pressure in early 2024, sparking a bull run that was only eclipsed as a momentum builder by Trump’s election win.
With Trump set to return to the White House, some expect friendlier regulators who might give Solana ETFs the green light, but when that will happen remains unclear.
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Lower your hopes
Several experts MONIIFY spoke to, wanted to temper down expectations on when that approval shall happen.
Crypto exchange OKX’s global chief commercial officer, Lennix Lai, tells MONIIFY that “Solana’s ETF approvals will come slower than expected,” and if an approval does come, it’ll be after October.
Jeff Yew, CEO of Monochrome Asset Management, a firm that was among the first to have its own Bitcoin ETF in Australia, says an approval will depend on whether the SEC is convinced of the market’s maturity.
Polymarket’s prediction odds have dropped, too, with the chance of a Solana ETF approval by July falling to 43% from a December high of 76%.
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Even with JPMorgan’s bold numbers, its analysts say there’s not enough investor demand to make these launches a big deal for the broader crypto ecosystem.
But remember, even the bank was skeptical about Bitcoin ETFs at first, which later blew away expectations.
For now, Solana remains a favorite of crypto insiders rather than a mainstream investment star. Its evolution is awaited.
Edited by Ankush Chibber. If you have any tips, ideas or feedback, please get in touch: talk-to-us@moniify.com
