Recently, the first so-called Solana ETF with built-in staking has been launched. However, perhaps because the issuer is not a well-known institution like BlackRock or Grayscale, there has been little discussion in the market. Many people saw that the price of the token remained unchanged after approval, thinking it was over. Today, I took some time to look into the situation. First of all, this fund is called REX-Osprey Solana Staking ETF, where REX-Osprey is a series of ETF funds launched in collaboration by REX Shares and Osprey Funds, specifically targeting cryptocurrencies, so it has a small management scale and low recognition.
Secondly, what everyone is most curious about is why everyone has been continuously tracking the approval progress of institutions like Grayscale and BlackRock, while this REX-Osprey just suddenly appeared and was approved for launch. This is mainly because they did not adopt the standard ETF process that requires SEC approval (19b-4) like BlackRock and Grayscale, but rather the 1940 Investment Company Act, which has lower thresholds and faster approval speeds. As long as the SEC does not oppose it, it can be completed within 75 days from submission to approval. However, the downside is that because it has not gone through very strict approval, the subsequent disclosure requirements will be much stricter than the regular disclosures of 19b-4, requiring daily disclosures, which will increase management costs. Additionally, it will be subject to double taxation. When the token price rises, it will be regarded as corporate profit, resulting in a 21% corporate income tax being levied. Investors will also be subject to dividend tax and capital gains tax.
Therefore, 19b-4 is more suitable for mature large assets like BTC, while the 1940 Investment Company Act is applicable to Solana and a series of other altcoins.
In short, let's wait for BlackRock and Grayscale to take action.