Investors are eagerly anticipating the debut of the first Solana staking exchange-traded fund (ETF) — a development expected to channel billions of dollars into Solana and the broader altcoin market.
According to Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas, at least three altcoin ETFs are scheduled to launch later on Tuesday: Bitwise’s Solana ETF, along with Canary’s Litecoin and Hedera ETFs.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) approval of the first Solana staking ETF marks a transformative milestone for the crypto industry. Ryan Lee, chief analyst at Bitget Exchange, predicts that the product could attract between $3 billion and $6 billion in new capital to Solana within its first year of trading.
“Solana could now attract between $3–$6 billion in its first year.”
The newly launched ETF includes a staking feature that offers investors an estimated 5% passive yield, a factor that could draw greater institutional interest into the broader altcoin market, not just ETF products, the analyst noted.
Staking involves locking tokens within a proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchain for a set period to help secure the network, while participants earn passive income as a reward for their contribution.
The introduction of new crypto-based ETFs could push their underlying altcoins to new all-time highs. For example, Bitcoin ETFs accounted for roughly 75% of new investment inflows when Bitcoin reclaimed the $50,000 level on February 15, less than a month after spot BTC ETFs debuted on January 11.
Solana Enters the “Big League” with ETF Launch, Boosting Altcoin Outlook
With its ETF debut, Solana is stepping into the “big league” alongside Bitcoin and Ethereum, a move expected to accelerate institutional adoption across the altcoin sector, according to Ryan Lee.
“Beyond Solana itself, this development signals broader acceptance of altcoins within regulated, yield-generating structures, channeling fresh capital into DeFi, real-world asset tokenization, and multi-asset ETF products,” Lee explained.
The historic launch of U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs drew $36.2 billion in investments during their first year, while U.S. spot Ether ETFs attracted $8.64 billion over the same period, according to blockchain data aggregator SoSoValue.
Drawing from the adoption trends of Bitcoin and Ether ETFs, JPMorgan projected that a Solana ETF could attract between $3 billion and $6 billion in new capital, while a potential XRP ETF might draw an even higher $4 billion to $8 billion in fresh investments.
