Cboe BZX Exchange Files for Spot XRP ETF

Cboe BZX Exchange has filed 19b-4s for Bitwise, 21Shares, and Canary Capital to list and trade a spot exchange-traded product that tracks XRP, the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap.

A 19b-4 filing represents the second step in proposing a crypto ETF to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Once the SEC acknowledges the filing, it will be published in the Federal Register to kick off the approval process.

Bitwise first registered a spot XRP ETF in October, while 21Shares submitted their S-1 registration for an XRP ETF in November.

The SEC approved the listing of spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024 and approved spot Ethereum ETFs last summer. Following President Donald Trump’s pro-crypto stance, many issuers have submitted spot crypto ETF filings recently.

[SEC Acting] Chair Mark Uyeda appointed fellow Republican Commissioner Hester Peirce to lead a crypto task force. Peirce plans to clarify which ‘crypto assets’ are considered securities, possibly altering registrational methods and enhancing communication regarding the approval of exchange-traded products, as reported previously by Sarah Wynn from The Block.

In addition, WisdomTree filed for a spot XRP ETF in December. NYSE Arca submitted a 19b-4 filing on January 30 to convert Grayscale’s XRP trust into a spot crypto ETF. CoinShares also registered statements for a “CoinShares XRP ETF” last month.

Purpose Investments submitted a preliminary prospectus with Canadian regulators for an XRP ETF on January 31, aiming to become the first issuer of an XRP ETF globally.

As of publication, the price of XRP had declined by 2.5%, trading at $2.34 according to The Block’s price data.