According to a source familiar with the matter, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has rejected Cboe BZX’s 19b-4 filings for two proposed spot Solana ETFs. Following this decision, the filings were withdrawn from Cboe’s website.
This rejection comes after discussions between the SEC and issuers, where the SEC expressed concerns that Solana should be considered a security, aligning with the agency’s stance in various court cases, as previously reported by The Block.
The 19b-4 filings, submitted by exchanges like Cboe on behalf of issuers, typically trigger the SEC’s approval process once they appear in the Federal Register. However, since the SEC rejected these forms, they never reached the Federal Register, halting the process before it could officially begin. In contrast, S-1 registration statements, filed by issuers, do not set any specific deadlines.
Currently, two issuers, 21Shares and VanEck, are pursuing Solana ETFs. Despite the setback, both applications remain active on the SEC’s EDGAR filing system. VanEck’s Head of Research, Matthew Sigel, indicated that their application is still under consideration.
The rejected filings may be refiled or amended with more robust arguments asserting that Solana is not a security. Audrey Belloff, head of communications at 21Shares, stated, “We are unable to comment on the regulatory process at this time. We remain committed to expanding investor access to cryptocurrencies in the U.S. market and around the world.”
The SEC declined to comment, and neither VanEck nor Cboe responded immediately to requests for comment.
