VanEck’s Solana ETF plans remain active despite Cboe filing removal

Asset manager VanEck remains committed to launching a Solana exchange-traded fund (ETF) despite recent developments that have fueled speculation about the project’s future.

The uncertainty began after Cboe Global Markets’ regulatory filing proposing to list the fund was pulled from its website.

Removal of Cboe files

Matthew Sigel, VanEck’s head of digital asset research, addressed the concerns in a recent X post, clarifying that the filing’s removal does not spell the end of the company’s Solana ETF ambitions .

He acknowledged that the 19b-4 for the VanEck Solana ETF has been pulled from CBOE’s website, but confirmed that the S-1 prospectus for the product is still active. This indicates that the company is sticking with its plans and that the ETF is still in play.

The now-absent 19b-4 filing filed by Cboe on July 8 sought approval from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to list VanEck and 21Shares’ planned Solana ETFs.

These filings, handled by exchanges like Nasdaq and Cboe, are different from the S-1 prospectuses that issuers like VanEck are responsible for filing. However, as of August 9, the filing was no longer visible on the Cboe website, fueling rumors about the ETFs’ status.

Summers, co-founder of the Synoptic Intelligence Network, highlighted the disappearance of the filings in an Aug. 17 post, noting that related documents were no longer accessible through Cboe’s pending rule changes.

He questioned whether 19b-4 had been fully withdrawn, given the SEC’s silence on the matter.

Experts doubt the approval of Solana ETF

Scott Johnsson, general counsel at Van Buren Capital, reacted to the removal with skepticism, suggesting that the Solana ETF may be “dead on arrival” under the current SEC administration, led by Chairman Gary Gensler.

Johnsson speculated that the regulator may have flagged the filings as misclassified, believing that Solana is not a commodity. If true, this could explain the lack of a formal notice of disapproval from the agency.

Nate Geraci, president of the ETF Store, agreed with Johnsson’s concerns, seeing the developments as a strong indication that a Solana ETF is unlikely to win approval under the current regulatory regime.

Despite these challenges, VanEck remains committed to its Solana ETF proposal. Sigel reiterated the company’s position that Solana, like Bitcoin and Ethereum, functions as a commodity.

He noted that evolving legal perspectives support this view, with some courts and regulators recognizing that certain crypto assets can act as securities in primary markets, but behave more like commodities in secondary markets.

“We remain committed to advocating this position together with our exchange partners to the appropriate regulators,” Sigel concluded.

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