The First SOL ETF Launching

The first-ever U.S.-based Solana (SOL) ETF is set to debut on March 20, marking a significant step toward spot ETF approval.

Launch Details

According to a Bloomberg report, Volatility Shares LLC plans to introduce two funds that will track SOL Futures markets:

• Volatility Shares Solana ETF (SOLZ): This fund will track SOL Futures.
• Volatility Shares 2X Solana ETF (SOLT): This fund will offer twice-leveraged exposure to the SOL asset.

Futures markets enable participants to speculate on SOL’s price without owning the physical asset.

Potential Impact on Spot ETFs

Historically, Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) were approved for spot ETFs after launching Futures products. However, Bloomberg’s senior analyst Eric Balchunas warned that the introduction of spot ETFs could pose challenges for Futures ETFs, noting:

> “It’s the first altcoin after Ether to be approved. But history has shown that ETF investors crave holding the physical asset as much as possible…It could have some issues when spot is approved.”

Nate Geraci suggested that spot SOL ETFs might launch soon, referencing the ETH ETF development path:

> “Less than a year ago, pretty much everyone thought spot ETH ETFs were a pipe dream. Now, we’ll have SOL futures ETFs. Spot SOL ETFs won’t be far behind IMO.”

Market Predictions

The prediction platform Polymarket indicates an 88% chance of spot SOL ETF approval by 2025, reflecting strong optimism this year. Other altcoins are also speculated, with various issuers filing for ETFs, including Cardano, HBAR, Polkadot, Aptos, and Sui. Notably, on March 17, Canary Capital filed with the SEC for an SUI ETF, intensifying the altcoin ETF competition under the Trump-era SEC.

As of now, SOL has experienced a 10% increase within 24 hours but has consolidated around the 100-Exponential Moving Average (EMA) on the 4-hour chart. A firm reclaim above this Moving Average could enhance SOL’s prospects for an extended recovery.