The SEC has reportedly raised questions about whether Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) should be classified as a security, potentially leading to a halt in filings related to its exchange-traded funds.
What Happened: The SEC held discussions with ETF applicants and communicated concerns over Solana's status as a security, as reported by The Block on Monday.
After these discussions, the SEC and exchange operator Cboe Global Markets Inc. (BATS:CBOE) decided not to submit the 19b-4 forms to the Federal Register, which would have started the approval process. This action prevents the SEC from being pressured to make decisions about the prospective Solana ETFs.
The SEC didn't immediately respond to Benzinga's request for comment on the matter.
Why It Matters: Over the weekend, it was observed that the 19b-4 filings, typically submitted by exchanges on behalf of issuers, are no longer visible on the Cboe website.
The filing of the 19b-4 document was the second step in getting ETFs greenlighted, following the submission of S-1 documents by VanEck and 21Shares in late June.
Amid the speculations, Matthew Sigel, the Head of Digital Assets Research at VanEck, lent support to SOL, stating that the asset manager considers SOL a commodity, like Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH).
For the record, VanEck believes SOL is a commodity, much like BTC and ETH. This belief is informed by evolving legal perspectives, where courts and regulators have begun to recognize that certain crypto assets may function as securities in primary markets but behave more like...
— matthew sigel, recovering CFA (@matthew_sigel) August 19, 2024
Earlier this month, Brazil approved its first-ever Solana ETFs, paving the way for mainstream investors to gain exposure to the price moves of the world's fifth-largest cryptocurrency.
Price Action: At the time of writing, SOL was unaffected, rising 2.72% in the last 24 hours, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
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