The Nasdaq Stock Exchange has submitted a 19b-4 filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the listing and trading of Grayscale’s spot Hedera (HBAR) exchange-traded fund (ETF). This process is regarded as the second step of a two-part procedure required for the approval of a cryptocurrency ETF. If accepted by the SEC, the application will be published in the Federal Register, officially initiating the regulatory review process.
How Will the Hedera ETF Approval Process Work?
The filing made by Nasdaq on behalf of Grayscale followed closely after a similar application for a spot Hedera ETF by Canary Capital. According to Bloomberg’s Senior ETF Analyst Eric Balchunas, Hedera and Litecoin (LTC) stand out as altcoins with the highest chances of SEC approval based on their progress.
Hedera is a decentralized public blockchain network utilizing the Hashgraph consensus algorithm and is governed by a council that includes major companies like Google and IBM. This council plays a significant role in the distribution of HBAR coins and the decision-making related to the network. As the SEC’s approval process is closely monitored by investors, uncertainty lingers regarding the future of ETF applications.
Surge in Altcoin ETF Applications in the U.S.
There has been a significant increase in altcoin ETF applications in the U.S. The expectation of a more favorable approach towards cryptocurrencies with Donald Trump’s potential re-election has led to many new ETF filings. Following Bitcoin (BTC) 
$74,104 and Ethereum (ETH) 
$2,273, spot ETF applications have also been filed for Solana 
$84 (SOL), XRP, Cardano 
$0.24261 (ADA), Litecoin (LTC), and Dogecoin 
$0.093146 (DOGE).
Earlier today, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) submitted a 19b-4 form for Bitwise’s Dogecoin ETF to the SEC. Bloomberg analysts had previously estimated a 75% likelihood for the approval of Dogecoin ETFs. As regulatory clarity begins to emerge in the U.S. cryptocurrency market, investors are eagerly awaiting news on whether new altcoin ETFs will receive SEC approval and which ones might be approved.
