What Will the SEC Decide?

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) now has a firm 240-day deadline to issue a decision on an XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF). 

This follows the publication of 19b-4 filings for two XRP-based investment products—the Grayscale XRP Trust and the 21Shares Core XRP Trust—in the Federal Register.

Deadline Set for XRP ETF

On February 20, the NYSE Arca’s 19b-4 filing to list and trade shares of the Grayscale XRP Trust was posted to the Federal Register. Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett highlighted the development on X.

“All this means is that the clock starts now for the SEC to engage and either approve or deny on or before October 18,” Terrett wrote. 

Moreover, Cboe’s similar filing for the 21Shares Core XRP Trust was posted today, February 21. The SEC’s deadline for this filing is October 19, 2025. These dates mark the official end of the SEC’s review process for both proposals. 

The SEC acknowledged the filings earlier this month, but the official posting has now initiated the 240-day review process. The regulator must now assess whether to approve, deny, or extend its review of these XRP ETFs. 

Cboe has also submitted similar 19b-4 filings for Bitwise Investment, Canary Funds, and WisdomTree. The SEC recently acknowledged Bitwise’s filing. Thus, the posting of the 21Shares filing could imply that Bitwise would soon follow suit.

How Will an XRP ETF Perform in the Market?

Currently, the US market has only two tradable crypto ETFs—Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). However, the demand for an Ethereum ETF hasn’t been as significant as Bitcoin’s, raising questions about the performance of a probable XRP ETF.

In a recent interview with CNBC, Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan discussed the potential for an XRP ETF. 

“I think there’s substantial demand for an XRP ETF,” he said.

Hougan further noted that XRP has built a loyal community over a long period, making it a well-established asset in the market. He highlighted that XRP is actively traded on centralized exchanges. Moreover, he stressed that investors strongly desire a straightforward, cost-effective way to hold the asset. 

Hougan also mentioned that the SEC is now more open to discussions under the new administration. In the past, he highlighted that conversations about topics like staking, in-kind transactions, and new assets were often shut down.

“They’re much more open to dialogue so I’m optimistic we’re going to see XRP ETFs Solana ETFs,” Hougan forecasted.

Moreover, Polymarket, a prediction platform, shows an 81% chance of an XRP ETF being approved in 2025.