(Bloomberg) — The race to launch an exchange-traded fund tracking XRP, the seventh-largest digital token, is on.
Canary Capital Group, a new investment firm focused on digital assets founded in September, presented Briefs with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday to launch the Canary XRP ETF. It comes just a week after Bitwise Asset Management Inc. became Bitwise Asset Management Inc the first firm to introduce an ETF that tracks the token.
Canary, founded by former Valkyrie Funds co-founder Steven McClurg, said in a statement that it was encouraged by “signs of a more progressive regulatory environment coupled with increased demand from investors”.
The filings come after the much-anticipated launch of ETFs holding Bitcoin and Ether earlier this year, and as companies including VanEck Asset Management and 21Shares AG look to launch funds linked to the Solana token. Bitcoin ETFs have attracted almost $19 billion in inflows since their debut, while Ether ETFs have about $550 million in outflows.
Canary's registration did not include a fee or anticipated fee. It would be the firm's first ETF.
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XRP filings show issuers are pushing regulators to open up the crypto boom to the wider retail crowd.
“This indicates that ETF providers will closely monitor the regulatory landscape for the perceived daylight to allow them to offer new products,” said Stephane Ouellette, co-founder and chief executive of FRNT Financial. “There is still uncertainty as to whether they will be adopted, and it makes a lot of sense for two firms born out of the local crypto landscape to try to expand their product offerings.”
The offers also come after a federal judge in August ordered Ripple Labs Inc. to pay a civil penalty for selling its XRP token to institutional investors without registering it with US regulators, after a long dispute.
In September, crypto asset manager Grayscale Investments said it has started offering Grayscale XRP Trust, which aims to provide investors with the opportunity to gain exposure to the token that powers the XRP Ledger, a distributed, peer-to-peer network designed to facilitate cross-border financial transactions.