During President Donald Trump’s second term, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has persistently worked to dismantle Gary Gensler’s crypto regulatory approach rule by rule.

On Thursday, the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance finalized a significant policy change, effectively dismantling the concept of staking.

In a statement, the agency clarified that solo staking, delegated staking, and certain forms of staking-as-a-service do not constitute securities offerings.

This marks a sharp U-turn from the Gensler-led commission, which actively pursued legal action against centralized staking providers like Kraken and Coinbase for alleged unregistered securities offerings.

SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, now heading the commission’s Crypto Task Force, offered a concise encapsulation: “Providing security is not a security.”

Peirce called the new guidance a “coherent path forward,” criticizing the prior administration’s heavy reliance on enforcement actions rather than establishing clear regulatory frameworks.

The updated guidance opens new avenues for exchange-traded fund (ETF) issuers exploring staking-related products. These could join the numerous altcoin and futures ETFs awaiting SEC approval.

“I believe we will see approval of staking in ETPs in the coming months and possibly even guidance that will allow Liquid Staking Tokens to be used.”

New ETF Frontier

Ethereum and Solana, the two largest proof-of-stake networks by market capitalisation, stand poised to benefit most substantially from this SEC pivot.

Staking ETFs for both blockchains have operated successfully in Europe for years.

For example, 21Shares successfully launched its Ethereum and Solana staking ETPs in Europe in 2019 and 2021, respectively. Both structures are physically backed, distribute staking rewards, and trade on platforms like SIX Swiss Exchange.

Recent data indicates the 21Shares Ethereum Staking ETF holds approximately $386 million in assets under management (AUM).

Despite Ethereum’s two-year head start and significantly larger market capitalisation, the 21Shares Solana product has nearly equaled the Ethereum fund’s assets under management, reaching close to $1 billion. This rapid adoption underscores particular investor interest.

According to Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart, over 70 distinct crypto-related ETF proposals are currently pending before the SEC.

These pending applications span a wide variety of asset classes and include multiple spot and futures ETFs tied to cryptocurrencies like Solana, XRP, Cardano, Litecoin, Dogecoin, and even Memecoins such as Melania.

Crypto Market Movers

Ethereum is down 3.7% in the same period to $2,620.

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