Matthew Sigel, VanEck’s head of digital asset research, said on November 15, 2024 that the odds of a Solana exchange-traded fund (ETF) listing in the US before the end of 2025 are “overwhelmingly high.”
Sigel has anticipated that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve additional proposed cryptocurrency products following former US President Donald Trump’s victory in the US Presidential Election earlier this November.
In an interview with Financial Times, Sigel said, “We would expect the SEC to approve more crypto products than they have in the past four years. I think the odds are overwhelmingly high that there will be a Solana ETF trading by the end of next year,” he said.
Trump’s victory in the US Presidential Election signals a positive outlook for more than half a dozen proposed crypto ETFs awaiting regulatory approval for listing in the US. In 2024, asset managers submitted numerous regulatory filings to list ETFs containing altcoins such as SOL, XRP, and Litecoin, among others. Issuers are also seeking approval for several planned crypto index ETFs intended to hold diverse collections of tokens.
Essentially, these filings were ‘call options on a Trump victory’ in the US Presidential race, according to Eric Balchunas, an ETF analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.
Ethena Foundation Implements Fee Distribution Plan For ENA Token
The Ethena Foundation signed off on Wintermute’s proposal to share a portion of the decentralised finance (DeFi) protocol’s revenues with token holders. Wintermute, a cryptocurrency market maker, had previously proposed the allocation of a portion of Ethena’s fee revenue to stakers of ENA, Ethena’s native token.
“The Ethena Foundation is pleased to share that the proposal to enable an $ENA fee switch has been approved by the Risk Committee. The Foundation will be working with the Risk Committee to crystallise parameters for fee switch activation by November 30 with precise implementation mechanics to follow,” Wintermute said in the governance forum.
Florida CFO Urges Retirement Fund Agency To Invest In Bitcoin
Jimmy Patronis, Florida’s chief financial officer (CFO), has urged the state’s retirement fund agency to consider investing in Bitcoin, citing its positive effect on traditional investment returns and its potential to reduce overall volatility.
In a letter to Chris Spencer, executive director of the Florida State Board of Administration, Patronis highlighted Bitcoin’s reputation as ‘digital gold’ and its ability to diversify the state’s portfolio while serving as a secure hedge against the volatility of other major asset classes.
Patronis’ suggestion holds merit, as Bitcoin has proven to be an effective portfolio diversifier, particularly for the traditional 60: 40 portfolio split between stocks and bonds.
Brian Rudick, head of research at GSR, informed Cointelegraph that a study by the firm revealed a modest 1 per cent Bitcoin allocation historically improved a standard 60: 40 portfolio’s Sharpe Ratio, a measure of risk-adjusted return developed by economist William F. Sharpe in 1966.
According to Rudick, increasing Bitcoin’s allocation beyond 1 per cent further enhances the Sharpe Ratio, indicating that the fund is generating returns that justify the increased risk.
Portfolios with a 1 per cent Bitcoin allocation typically saw an excess return of about 1 per cent annually, with minimal increases in volatility and maximum drawdown.
