Legacy asset manager T. Rowe Price has made its first attempt to offer a crypto ETF tracking the performance of major digital assets like XRP and Cardano.
The $1.77 trillion Baltimore-based firm filed an S-1 form with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday, according to the regulator’s official website. Termed the T. Rowe Price Active Crypto ETF, the fund will offer exposure to “eligible assets” that meet its criteria at the time of filing.
New ETF Tracking the Performance of XRP and Cardano
Notably, the eligible assets include Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Dogecoin, Solana, Cardano, Hedera, Chainlink, Shiba Inu, Avalanche, Bitcoin Cash, Polkadot, Lumen, and Litecoin. The mixed crypto ETF would have most of its weight on BTC and Ether, with other assets comprising a smaller percentage.
The T. Rowe Price Active Crypto ETF is the first digital asset-based fund for the manager, aiming to build on the success of previously launched ETFs. For context, the Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs have attracted billions in inflows since launch, with BlackRock’s Bitcoin spot ETF becoming the most successful fund in ETF history.
Meanwhile, the Wednesday filing noted that it seeks to outperform the FTSE Crypto US Listed ETF.
Notably, the number of cryptocurrencies in the fund can vary depending on the asset manager’s discretion. The fund will hold between 5 and 15 tokens but can still exceed the upper boundary or fall below the lower boundary at any time.
The filing adds to the expanding list of ETFs offering spot access to XRP and Cardano. Grayscale earlier filed for an ADA spot ETF, while asset managers like 21 Shares, Bitwise, Franklin Templeton, and Canary Capital, among others, have filed for the XRP spot ETF.
Growing Commingling Between TradFi and Crypto
For the uninitiated, T. Rowe Price is a legacy asset manager that has been around since 1937. It focused mainly on mutual funds before its recent interest in crypto.
Analysts believe this highlights the growing adoption of the digital asset sector by the traditional financial system.
“Can’t overstate significance of T. Rowe Price filing for an actively managed crypto ETF out of left field,” NovaDius Wealth Manager President Nate Geraci tweeted.
He added that thinking that the cryptocurrency would go away is not a good business strategy. Furthermore, he stated that this could be the first step before a venture into securities tokenization.
Meanwhile, the US SEC cannot work on the T. Rowe Price or any other ETF application presently. This is because the US government shutdown remains ongoing, limiting the activities of the securities watchdog. Many believe that upon resumption, the commission will approve multiple altcoin ETFs lying on its desk, including the XRP and Cardano ETFs.
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