By Suzanne McGee
(Reuters) – Just days after President Donald Trump launched his new crypto token, two asset management firms jointly sought regulatory approval to debut an exchange-traded fund tied to the digital currency or “meme coin,” according to a Tuesday filing.
REX Advisers, the parent company of ETF issuer REXShares, and Osprey Funds filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to launch a total of seven new cryptocurrency ETFs tied to the $TRUMP coin launched on Friday, other meme coins like DOGE and BONK, and established tokens like Solana and Ripple’s XRP.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
The filings will test just how far the SEC’s new crypto-friendly leadership, which on Tuesday kicked off a crypto policy overhaul, will be willing to go in unleashing new crypto products.
KEY QUOTES
“This is the wild west, now; a world where there is the potential to unleash a lot of esoteric products and people are willing to see what will fly because it’s such a growth area,” said Todd Sohn, ETF strategist at Strategas.
“But I don’t know how many of these will win approval; some strike me as a bit outlandish.”
The filing spells out some of the risks in trying to design, much less invest, in fledgling crypto tokens like $TRUMP.
“TRUMP is a relatively new innovation and is subject to unique and substantial risks,” REXShares and Osprey Funds said. “The market for TRUMP is subject to rapid price swings, changes and uncertainty.”
KEY CONTEXT
$TRUMP has been on a rollercoaster ride, from about $10 to as high as $74.59 the same day, to $31.65 Monday night and $44 late Tuesday afternoon, according to cryptocurrency price monitor CoinGecko. That gives the meme coin a paper valuation of $8.9 billion.
Neither REX nor Osprey could immediately be reached for comment. The Trump administration’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
ProShares, another asset manager, also on Friday filed for eight new ETFs, four tied to Solana and four to XRP. So far, regulators have not approved ETFs tied to those coins. In addition, ProShares hopes to win approval to launch leveraged and inverse ETFs.
ProShares declined comment. The latest crop of crypto ETF filings will join some two dozen others already seeking the go-ahead from the SEC.
(Reporting by Suzanne McGee; editing by Michelle Price and Edward Tobin)
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