The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Formally Recognizes Litecoin and XRP Exchange-Traded Fund Filings Submitted by CoinShares

The return of President Donald Trump as the first U.S. crypto president has also encouraged firms to test new waters.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has officially recognized filings for Litecoin (LTC) and XRP exchange-traded funds. CoinShares, a digital asset management firm, submitted the applications to the Securities and Exchange Commission on behalf of the Nasdaq.

The filings, which were published in the Federal Register on Monday, are part of a two-step process for listing and trading new investment products. The first step involves filing a 19b-4 form, which outlines the proposed rule change. The second step typically involves the issuer filing a registration statement, or S-1 form, with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The Securities and Exchange Commission will now open a 21-day comment period for the public to provide feedback on the filings. After considering the comments, the agency will decide whether to approve or deny the applications.

CoinShares is seeking to launch two spot exchange-traded funds, one tracking the price of Litecoin and the other tracking the price of XRP. The funds would be listed on the Nasdaq and would trade under the symbols “LITC” and “XRPS,” respectively.

If approved, the CoinShares Litecoin ETF would join two other pending filings for spot Litecoin funds from Grayscale and Canary Capital. Several firms, including 21Shares, Bitwise, and Grayscale, have also filed applications for spot XRP exchange-traded funds.

The filings come amid a growing interest in new crypto exchange-traded funds on Wall Street. The massive success of spot Bitcoin (BTC) and spot Ethereum (ETH) ETFs in 2023 has prompted issuers to set their sights on new digital assets.

The return of President Donald Trump as the first U.S. crypto president has also encouraged firms to test new waters in the financial markets. Bloomberg analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart estimate a 90% chance that the Securities and Exchange Commission will approve Litecoin exchange-traded funds.

The pair of analysts previously projected approval odds for spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, which turned out to be accurate. While Litecoin funds have the highest likelihood of approval, XRP products are also expected to receive the agency's nod.

Bloomberg analysts estimate a 65% probability of approval for spot XRP exchange-traded funds.