In April 2025, the global cryptocurrency financial market achieved a milestone breakthrough—the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) in Canada officially approved four financial institutions to issue the world's first Solana spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) and allowed it to simultaneously incorporate the blockchain staking reward mechanism.
This regulatory breakthrough not only signifies Solana, as a top three market cap public chain project, officially entering the traditional financial compliance investment system but also creates an innovative financial product paradigm of 'spot holdings + staking income', setting a new benchmark for the deep integration of cryptocurrency and traditional asset management.
Prior to this, the global cryptocurrency ETF market had long been dominated by Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). This time, Canadian regulators directly permitted the issuance of Solana spot ETFs by four major asset management firms: Purpose Investments, Evolve ETFs, CI Global Asset Management, and 3iQ, becoming the first compliant channel that allows retail and institutional investors to invest directly in Solana's spot market through traditional financial instruments. The first products are scheduled to officially launch on the Toronto Stock Exchange on April 16.
According to disclosed regulatory documents, the approved ETF will directly hold the native token of Solana (SOL), rather than based on futures contracts or derivatives, achieving real-time price tracking of the underlying asset. This means that investors do not need to directly manage private keys or go through cryptocurrency exchanges, as they can gain exposure to Solana's spot market through traditional securities accounts.
At the same time, an important feature of this Solana spot ETF is its staking function. The fund manager will participate in the Solana network's proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism on behalf of the investors, earning network rewards by staking the SOL tokens held. With Solana's current annual staking yield of about 7%-10% (higher than Ethereum's 4%-5%), the ETF will periodically distribute staking income to holders. This mechanism can effectively offset about 0.5%-1% of management fees and create additional returns for investors beyond simple price fluctuations.
There is no doubt that the staking mechanism through ETFs is still novel, and Canada's attempt may encourage more financial institutions to explore similar models. The approval from regulatory authorities indicates a growing interest in combining decentralized finance (DeFi) characteristics with traditional financial products.
It is worth mentioning that Canada's leading position in the cryptocurrency ETF space is not accidental. In February 2021, the country launched the world's first Bitcoin spot ETF (Purpose Bitcoin ETF), which was 11 months ahead of the U.S. SEC's approval of similar products; in October 2022, it became the first major market to approve an Ethereum spot ETF. The approval of the Solana product marks that Canada has established a complete cryptocurrency ETF product line covering 'Bitcoin (store of value) – Ethereum (smart contracts) – Solana (high-performance public chain)', forming a comprehensive layout for the three major tracks of blockchain technology.
In contrast, the U.S. has not approved any spot altcoin ETFs other than Ethereum (ETH). The only Solana ETF that U.S. investors can purchase is a futures-based product; however, these products have failed to generate meaningful attraction. As of April 2025, the total asset management scale (AUM) of the only two Solana futures ETFs in the U.S. is less than $200 million, and due to the high premiums and management fees of futures contracts, the annualized tracking error exceeds 15%. More critically, the U.S. SEC's regulatory classification of 'altcoins' remains unclear, with disputes over whether projects like Solana and XRP are classified as 'commodities', 'securities', or 'undefined assets', resulting in a deadlock in the approval of spot ETFs.
Experts point out that if Canada's Solana ETF exceeds CAD 1 billion in AUM in its first month, it will put direct pressure on the U.S. SEC, forcing it to reassess its regulatory stance on spot altcoin ETFs. Especially during the Trump administration, several applications for altcoin ETFs were submitted but have yet to be approved.
Additionally, influenced by Canada, countries like the UK and Singapore, which have an open attitude towards crypto assets, may accelerate their approval processes, while the U.S. SEC will also face increased public pressure. In the next two years, we may witness a peak period of intensive approvals for global spot ETFs.
Overall, the approval of the world's first Solana spot ETF not only provides investors with new investment options but also signifies the further maturation of the cryptocurrency market. The introduction of staking rewards makes this product more attractive, potentially encouraging more investors to participate.
As Canada's leading position in this field becomes apparent, regulators in other countries will face pressure to reconsider their policies to adapt to the rapidly evolving cryptocurrency market. In this transformative era, only by embracing innovation and properly managing risks can one remain invincible in the wave of financial revolution.
