BlackRock CIO Samara Cohen stated that introducing a Solana ETF is impractical, as there is no demand for altcoins other than Ethereum. By Bhushan Akolkar July 30, 2024
Highlights
- Samara Cohen said that unlike Ethereum, there’s no appetite for other altcoins to be eligible for crypto ETF.
- BlackRock CIO said that crypto ETFs coming to model portfolios as top wirehouses conduct due diligence.
- Expectations of any further crypto ETFs this year seem bleak and can happen only after US elections.
On Monday, July 29, in an interview with Bloomberg, BlackRock’s CIO for ETFs, Samara Cohen, confirmed that the firm is not planning to pursue any additional crypto ETFs, including a spot Solana ETF, in the near future. Cohen noted that while Bitcoin and Ethereum have met their expectations, no other altcoin is close to meeting their criteria.
BlackRock – No Appetite for Solana ETF
While Bitcoin constitutes 55% of the total crypto market, Ethereum has a share of 17%. The rest of the altcoins are all below the double-digit contributions. Thus, there could be liquidity and manipulation concerns associated with introducing other crypto ETFs like the Solana ETF into the market.
BlackRock’s Cohen said that there are major technical difficulties in bringing other crypto ETFs into the market as the appetite for other crypto ETFs, including Solana isn’t there. In the Bloomberg interview, Cohen said:
“We really look at the investability to see what meets the criteria, what meets the bar to be delivered in an ETF. For us, both in terms of investability and also what we hear from our clients, Bitcoin and Ethereum definitely meet that bar, but it will be a while before we see anything else.”
Samara Cohen echoed the stand of BlackRock’s head of digital assets – Robert Mitchnick. while speaking at the Bitcoin conference last week, Mitchnik said that there’s no scope for future crypto ETFs in the market.
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Also Read: BlackRock Crypto Chief Dismisses Possibility Of Solana, XRP ETF Approval
On the other hand, asset managers like VanEck are pushing ahead for the Solana ETF stating that they are seeing strong demand from the crypto community. Last week, the Solana price managed to overtake BNB for the fourth spot. However, amid the broader market sell, SOL is trading 5% down at $182, as of press time.
Crypto ETFs to Be Part of Model Portfolios
BlackRock CIO Samara Cohen also stated that crypto ETFs would soon be part of the “Model portfolios” by the end of 2024. Her statement came while answering the question asking where big fund houses such as Wells Fargo, Morgan Stanley, UBS, and others see were with onboarding and promoting crypto ETFs.
She added that all these wirehouses are conducting due diligence, risk analysis, etc. while weighing the role of BTC and ETH in their portfolios.
BlackRock CIO of ETF and Index Investments Samara Cohen discusses the iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) and expects we’ll see allocation of crypto ETFs in model portfolios by the end of this year and into 2025 https://t.co/5UOLwIRWHL pic.twitter.com/rYqpym7Wqg
— Bloomberg Crypto (@crypto) July 29, 2024
BlackRock has successfully introduced the Ethereum ETF in the market last week. BlackRock’s ETHA continues to drive the most inflows among its peers.
Also Read: US Govt To Sell Entire Bitcoin Holdings, Peter Schiff Warns