The New Year of Crypto ETF: How the Field is Changing in the American Era

Two years now, it’s still impossible for most Americans to buy Bitcoin or Ethereum through traditional funds. Today, there are not just two cryptocurrencies available—there’s XRP, Solana, Dogecoin, and many more. This change didn’t happen overnight. It’s the result of a major regulatory breakthrough that occurred in September.

The Secret Change That Opened the Door

In September, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) made a truly game-changing decision: they approved a unified standard for commodity trust listing. Before this, the SEC had to decide on each ETF application one by one. But now, there are clear rules—if the product meets the standards, it can be launched.

What are the standards? Simple: there must be a regulated market for the digital asset, at least six months of futures trading history, or support from an existing ETF with a large asset base.

Result? According to Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas, now about 12 dozen cryptocurrencies may be eligible—not just one or two. And all that’s left is approval from asset management companies. There are nearly 126 pending applications.

The Crypto ETF Boom: Numbers You Can’t Ignore

Let’s see how big the inflow into these products is. Since the launch of the first spot Bitcoin ETF in January 2024 until December 15, it has attracted $57.7 billion in net inflow. If at the start of the year it was only $36.2 billion, that’s a 59% increase in just a few months.

But the money flow isn’t consistent. There are days when $1.2 billion entered in a single day (on October 6, when Bitcoin approached $126,000). There are also days when $900 million left (on November 11, when prices dropped). This is the reality of market sentiment.

Ethereum has its own story. Since launching the spot Ethereum ETF last July until mid-December, it has accumulated $12.6 billion. It peaked at $1 billion inflow in a single day in August when ETH rallied near $4,950.

The Surprise Winner: XRP and Solana Growing Fast

Here’s the interesting part. Most people thought there would be no competition to Bitcoin and Ethereum. But in November, the spot XRP ETF and spot Solana ETF launched—and their performance exceeded expectations.

Within just a few weeks of launch, the XRP ETF has already attracted $883 million in inflow. The Solana ETF has $92 million. Dogecoin? It has $2 million.

Why is this happening? Simple—XRP and Solana communities are really strong. Juan Leon, Senior Investment Strategist at Bitwise, says, “These communities are highly engaged not just in participation but also in strength and size.” For him, this is a good sign for the growth of these two ecosystems in 2026.

There’s another attractive feature: the Solana ETF shares a portion of staking rewards with investors. This is part of the new guidelines issued by the U.S. Treasury and IRS last month, which truly pushed this development.

The Next Battle: Index ETF vs. Spot ETF

While everyone is excited about individual coin ETFs, there’s another trend quietly growing: index ETFs. These are funds that track multiple cryptocurrencies simultaneously, like a crypto version of the S&P 500.

Gerry O’Shea from Hashdex has a clear vision: “Professional investors are more likely to create index ETFs because they understand holdings will change over time. They don’t need to know every detail about each asset.”

In February, Hashdex launched the first spot crypto index ETF in the U.S., including Cardano, Chainlink, Stellar, and other major cryptocurrencies. Followed by Franklin Templeton, Grayscale, Bitwise, 21Shares, and CoinShares. These index ETFs offer access to around 19 types of digital assets.

The Institutional Money Shake-Up: What’s the New Picture?

Here’s where the real game changer begins. Not just retail investors buying crypto ETFs—institutions are also arriving.

In November, Al Warda Investments (affiliated with Abu Dhabi Investment Authority) announced their $500 million holdings in BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF. Mubadala Investment Company also has $567 million.

But the most emblematic? Harvard University Endowment Fund has $433 million. Brown University and Emory University also revealed their spot Bitcoin ETF holdings this year.

In just one month, Vanguard announced that 50 million clients will be able to trade spot crypto ETFs on their platform. Bank of America also approved limited crypto allocations for private wealth clients starting next year.

O’Shea says, “A year ago, there was a lot of regulatory uncertainty. Now, it’s no longer about whether to invest, but how to invest.”

What’s the Price Impact?

One important thing—this institutional inflow could reduce Bitcoin’s volatility. Do you know why? Simple: institutions have a longer investment horizon than retail investors. They don’t panic-sell when prices dip slightly.

This is good for the long-term sustainability of Bitcoin as an asset class.

Are You Ready to Get Started?

In today’s American landscape, crypto ETFs are no longer fringe products. They are part of the mainstream financial scene. There’s Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Solana. There’s also an index fund if you want diversified exposure.

The only question: are you ready to join this movement?