Global investment bank JPMorgan has expressed doubt that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve solana ETFs or any other spot crypto ETFs beyond bitcoin and ether. The decision by the SEC to approve ether ETFs “is already stretched given the ambiguity about whether ethereum should be classified as security or not,” said JPMorgan’s analyst.
JPMorgan Weighs In on Potential SEC Approval of Other Spot Crypto ETFs
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s recent approval of spot ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has sparked discussions on the potential for other spot crypto ETFs, such as XRP or solana (SOL). While optimism exists in the crypto market, JPMorgan’s managing director and global market strategist, Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, remains doubtful.
“We doubt. The decision by the SEC to approve ETH ETFs is already stretched given the ambiguity about whether ethereum should be classified as security or not,” he said, adding:
We don’t think the SEC would go even further by approving solana or other token ETFs given the SEC has stronger (relative to ethereum) opinion that tokens outside bitcoin and ethereum should be classified as securities.
Panigirtzoglou emphasized the controversial nature of the SEC’s decision on ethereum ETFs, which some analysts believe was politically influenced. He explained that unless U.S. policymakers pass legislation defining most cryptocurrencies as non-securities, the SEC is unlikely to approve other spot cryptocurrency ETFs.
Many in the crypto industry, including spot ether ETF issuers, did not anticipate the SEC would approve their applications. Prior to the approval, Panigirtzoglou estimated a 50% chance of the SEC approving spot ether ETFs. Nonetheless, on May 23, the SEC approved eight 19b-4 forms for spot ether ETFs.
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has consistently stated that most crypto tokens, except bitcoin, are securities. He has not explicitly confirmed that ether is not a security. A recent court document revealed that the SEC initiated a formal investigation into ether as a potential security last year.