Nasdaq Submits 19b-4 Form for Canary's Litecoin ETF

Nasdaq submitted the 19b-4 form for Canary Funds' Litecoin (LTC) ETF application on January 17.

This initiates a 240-day approval cycle, where the SEC will decide on the application or request further information.

Bloomberg analysts suggest that the submission may indicate SEC involvement and increase the likelihood of Litecoin ETF approval.

On January 17, Nasdaq submitted the 19b-4 form for Canary Funds' Litecoin (LTC) ETF application to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), kicking off the second part of the two-step approval process for ETFs.

According to the document, U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC will serve as the manager, and U.S. Bank N.A. will be responsible for holding the ETF's cash. Notably, Coinbase Custody Trust Company LLC will hold the Litecoin for the ETF.

As per SEC regulations, the submission of this form initiates a 240-day approval cycle, during which the SEC will decide whether to approve the application or request further information, ultimately leading to approval or disapproval.

"This 19b-4 filing from Nasdaq pushes the process internally at the SEC, but the SEC still needs to confirm the filing, which typically happens within a few weeks," explained Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart.

"If or when the SEC confirms this filing, we will have a clearer understanding of the potential timeline for rejection or approval."

While the submission of the 19b-4 form is a crucial step, it does not guarantee approval. However, it marks a significant development in the approval process for Litecoin ETFs.

As of 2 PM on January 17, Litecoin's market cap stood at $10.48 billion, ranking 19th among cryptocurrencies according to CMC data, with a 16% price increase in the past 24 hours.

This growth trend makes the approval of the Litecoin ETF more attractive, especially since the SEC has not classified Litecoin as a security, unlike larger market cap cryptocurrencies like SOL and XRP, which the SEC has referred to as "securities" in pending lawsuits.

In December, seven cryptocurrency ETF applications were filed with the SEC, including those tracking Solana, XRP, Litecoin, and HBAR. Among these, the Grayscale Solana ETF application is expected to receive a preliminary response from the SEC by January 23.

Meanwhile, other Solana ETF applications, filed by Kryptoin, Tidal, and Global X, are set to expire on January 25.

In a horizontal comparison of the three altcoin ETFs, Katalin Tischhauser, head of investment research at crypto bank Sygnum, pointed out that the likelihood of Solana becoming the third cryptocurrency (after Bitcoin and Ethereum) to receive approval for a U.S. spot ETF by the end of January is low.

She highlighted that the SEC has yet to begin evaluating the market for Solana as an underlying asset, which means that the approval of Solana's ETF may take more time.

With the Trump administration set to take office in four days, the market is filled with anticipation for the approval prospects of cryptocurrency ETFs.

On January 17, according to foreign media reports, U.S. President-elect Trump expressed a willingness to establish a U.S.-first strategic reserve, prioritizing cryptocurrencies like Solana (SOL) and XRP, which has boosted overall market sentiment.

Currently, the ETF applications for LTC, Solana, and XRP may find more opportunities in the new policy environment. With the appointment of new SEC Chairman Paul Atkins, a reversal of the previous SEC's regulatory and approval model is expected, and the approval of altcoin ETFs is likely to become an important topic in the crypto market in the coming months, making the development of this process worthy of close attention.