The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed decisions on three much-anticipated applications for cryptocurrency-related exchange-traded funds (ETFs), with October shaping up to be a decisive month for the entire industry.
On 10 September, the SEC announced that it had extended the evaluation time for three of the most closely watched applications of recent weeks: BlackRock's proposal for an Ethereum ETF with staking and Franklin Templeton's applications for spot ETFs on XRP and Solana. The postponement comes after the agency had already missed several deadlines on other decisions related to crypto ETFs.
These continued postponements come amid reports of the SEC and US exchanges working together on a 'generic' regulatory framework for token-based ETFs, with the aim of speeding up approval processes.
Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart said on 9 September that October looks increasingly likely to be the 'next big window' for SEC rulings on crypto ETFs, with more than 90 applications still under review.
A 'generic' regulatory framework for token-based ETFs could allow issuers to bypass the standard Form 19b-4 rule change application process if the underlying assets meet certain pre-defined criteria. In that case, issuers would only have to file registration forms on Form S-1, a shorter path to approval that would allow products to go directly to listing, without the usual review and comment cycles with the SEC.
Trading volumes, market capitalisation and daily liquidity on regulated exchanges would be among the criteria considered by the agency as possible qualifying parameters. This would represent a significant departure from the current 'case-by-case' regulatory approach taken to date for each individual crypto spot ETF application.
Meanwhile, with a number of new ETFs awaiting potential approval in the coming months, one will debut as early as this week under the Investment Company Act of 1940, known as the Structure 40 Act.
In a post dated 9 September, Eric Balchunas, senior analyst at Bloomberg, revealed that an ETF on Dogecoin will be launched on 11 September. According to Balchunas, it is "effectively the first US ETF to intentionally hold a utility-free asset," referring to Dogecoin's origins as a meme coin. The 40 Act structure will also require the new ETF to issue all units at a set initial price and have a board of directors that meets annually.
Meme coin ETF was about to kick off it looks like with $DOJE slated for a Thursday launch, albeit under the 40 Act a la $SSK. There's a big group of '33 Act-ers waiting for SEC approval still. Pretty sure this is first-ever US ETF to hold something that has no utility on purpose pic.twitter.com/BIcpu1zR4o
- Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) September 9, 2025
The countdown to approval
Currently, the SEC has 92 active applications for ETFs linked to various cryptocurrencies, including Solana, XRP, Litecoin and staked versions of existing ETFs.
The issuers range from industry giants such as VanEck, Grayscale, Canary, Bitwise and Franklin Templeton to companies recently whitelisted by the SEC as eligible traders.
With several deadlines looming in October, the next big window of approvals for crypto ETFs could soon open for investors awaiting the first official approval on these digital assets.
