Regulatory optimism in the US has led to at least 31 altcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications to the US Securities and Exchange Commission in the first half of 2025.
The SEC has approved futures and spot ETFs for Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), but past attempts to list altcoin-related instruments have withered on the vine. Now, renewed optimism after the 2024 elections has led to several new applications that are expected to be approved.
The list includes filings from familiar names such as VanEck, which applied to list ETFs in BNB (BNB) and Avalanche (AVAX). WisdomTree and Franklin Templeton both have XRP (XRP) ETFs pending. Memecoins are also represented, with REX-Osprey applying to list an ETF of US President Donald Trump’s token.
ETF and crypto analysts are optimistic that at least 10 applications will pass muster with the SEC, which has onlookers hyped about an “altcoin summer.”
ETF filings heat up hopes of an “altcoin summer”
Spot Bitcoin ETFs were first approved in the US in January 2024. Months later, in July, spot Ether ETFs followed.
This nod was seen as a pivotal moment for the adoption of cryptocurrencies, as it gave institutional investors exposure to the market through a financial instrument they were already comfortable with: an ETF.
Now, altcoins (any crypto that isn’t Ether or Bitcoin) may be getting their shot at institutional adoption.
As shown by Cointelegraph Research, there have been at least 31 spot altcoin ETF filings in 2025. Among the applications, ETFs containing Ripple’s payments-focused crypto, XRP, and the seminal memecoin Dogecoin (DOGE) appear most prominently.
According to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, a “potential Alt Coin summer” is on the way, with a Litecoin (LTC) ETF likely to be the first approved — although Solana (SOL) could be close behind.
“[A Litecoin ETF is] def among the most likely to be out first, but Osprey forcing their Solana 40 act filing effective may have sparked the SEC to act faster on the Solana ones,” he said.
“Commission staff continues to have unresolved questions about whether the Funds, if structured and operated as proposed, would be able to meet the definition of ‘investment company’ under the Investment Company Act,” the SEC stated.
Still, Balchunas said that REX-Osprey lawyers are certain they can work things out with the commission, and the fund’s legal team is pushing the envelope in an effort to be first to market.
Analysts showed further cause for optimism after the SEC reportedly asked would-be Solana ETF issuers to update and clarify filing language regarding in-kind redemptions and staking. This supposedly shows that the SEC is open to staking — a key component of many altcoin ecosystems.
According to a Bloomberg Terminal snapshot shared by Balchunas, chances for altcoin ETF approval are good overall, tipping approval changes for 10 ETFs at 60% or above.
Is it altcoin summer or winter?
Still, ETF approval does not guarantee prices going to the moon. Nearly a year after approval, ETH’s price has not seen the same meteoric price action as its counterpart, Bitcoin.
Last month witnessed positive inflows and not a single day of net outflows to ETH ETFs, but critics and observers are concerned about relatively low network fees and the Ethereum network losing ground on decentralized exchanges.
Related: SOL price toward $300 next? Solana ETF approval chances jump to 91%
Demand for altcoin ETFs may be even less than for ETH ETFs, as Balchunas stated, “Nothing will compare to bitcoin. We have a little saying on the team: ‘The further away you get from btc, the less assets there will be.’”
Dreams for an “altcoin summer” may further dampen as altcoins’ dominance wanes. Crypto market observer Daan Crypto Trades wrote in February about decreasing altcoin dominance but noted that “the decline was quicker and more severe” than previous cycles.
Two independent “altcoin season indexes” from Blockchain Center and CoinMarketCap show the indicator firmly in “Bitcoin season.”
Still, others see an opportunity. Analyst Michaël van de Poppe wrote on June 1 that the altcoin market hasn’t even begun: “The biggest bull market ever on crypto is about to happen, as the expansion after such a long bear market is going to be bigger than before.”
Even as Israel’s attack on Iran shook crypto prices on June 13, van de Poppe remained optimistic of upward momentum, stating that gold breaking downward was a signal for altcoin growth.
“Buying the dip for opportunities. This should quickly fade away,” he said in a subsequent post.
SEC 180s, while CFTC on deck for regulation
On April 10, the SEC got its new chairman, businessman Paul Atkins, following a lengthy confirmation process in the Senate.
Atkins’ priorities were to reverse the actions of his predecessor, Gary Gensler, whom the crypto industry accused of stifling its potential.
Atkins’ SEC has wasted no time reversing a number of policies and implementing new, crypto-friendly rules.
On June 12, the SEC announced that it would be “withdrawing certain notices of proposed rulemaking” made under Gensler. Among them was Rule 3b-16, which expanded the definition of the term “exchange” to include DeFi protocols.
Related: SEC to shape crypto policy with ‘notice and comment,’ says Atkins
It also axed a rule that required investment firms to hold client assets with a “qualified custodian,” a definition from which crypto exchanges and wallet providers were typically excluded.
Atkins has also directed staff to work on a so-called “innovation exemption.” This new exclusion for certain crypto- and blockchain-related financial products would supposedly allow new onchain products to come to market more quickly.
The SEC chair’s new approach of “notice and comment” rather than “regulation by enforcement” has been lauded not just by the crypto industry but by fellow regulator Caroline Pham, acting chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
With regulatory restructuring just getting started — be it from new laws to agency shakeups — the crypto industry is optimistic for future growth in the US. ETFs may be set to take off in this changing landscape.
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