Solana (SOL) ETF Removal from Cboe Website Highlights SEC's Ongoing Caution

Solana (SOL) remains under the “security” label imposed by the U.S. SEC, which likely led to the removal of VanEck and 21Shares’ 19b-4 forms from the Chicago Board Options Exchange (Cboe) website.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approached prospective issuers regarding the potential security classification of Solana (SOL), according to a source familiar with the matter. This prompted the SEC and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (Cboe) to refrain from submitting 19b-4s forms to the Federal Register for VanEck and 21Shares' Solana ETF filings.

The submission of 19b-4 filings would have initiated the approval process for these ETFs. These forms outline the requirements and disclosures necessary for listing an ETF for trading on a stock exchange, and the 19b-4s qualify the S-1 registration statements to go effective.

As reported by BeInCrypto, the 19b-4s forms for Solana ETF filings have disappeared from the Cboe website. Meanwhile, VanEck's S-1 registration statement for its Solana ETF is still visible on the SEC's filing system, EDGAR. However, 21Shares' S-1 registration statement filing is no longer present in search results, although the direct link remains functional.

This development comes after the SEC classified 12 tokens, including SOL, as securities in June 2023. Several projects have contested the SEC's claims.

Given the SEC's prior contention that Solana may be a security, this news is not surprising. While Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) have approved ETFs (exchange-traded funds), the chances of Solana ETFs being approved under the current administration are slim. Some experts believe it may not happen until 2025, if at all.

“Solana ETF not happening anytime soon under the current administration,” said Nate Geraci, President of the ETF Store.

It's important to note that the U.S. SEC has yet to formally publish its notice.

Recent Events Highlight Need for More Convincing Arguments for Solana ETF Approval

These recent events align with statements made by Hester Pierce, one of the SEC Commissioners, who is known as the "crypto mom." According to Pierce, the SEC will require more convincing arguments before approving a Solana ETF, highlighting the regulator's differing perspectives on what constitutes a security.

This stance stems from June 2023, when the U.S. SEC named 12 tokens in the exchanges' lawsuits, asserting that they were offered and sold as investment contracts and, therefore, as securities. These tokens included Solana's SOL, Cardano (ADA), Polygon (MATIC), Filecoin (FIL), Cosmos (ATOM), Sandbox (SAND), Decentraland (MANA), Algorand (ALGO), Axie Infinity (AXS), Coti (COTI), and Binance's BUSD and BNB tokens.

“I mean, the SEC literally alleged SOL to be a security back in June 2023 when it sued Coinbase so this should not be a surprise,” said Fred Rispoli, an attorney, in response to the recent development.

The regulator's assertion in the exchanges' lawsuits was that these tokens have been “offered and sold as investment contracts and, therefore, as securities” since their inception. Notably, this statement appeared in the context of each crypto asset mentioned, presenting the de facto argument for what qualifies as securities.

The regulator's filing provided 53 pages of context, dissecting each of the 12 crypto assets mentioned. This latest stance against Solana marks another one of the SEC's moves, which have been described as regulation by enforcement. In light of this setback, crypto proponents already anticipate that the U.S. will fall behind in issuing Solana ETFs.

“Canada will win again with a SOL ETF,” said David Tawil, co-founder and president of ProChain Capital, in a tweet about the recent development.