Bitwise Files Spot AVAX ETF with SEC: A Bold Move for Avalanche Adoption
Wall Street meets Web3 as Bitwise drops regulatory paperwork for first-ever AVAX ETF.
The Institutional On-Ramp
Bitwise just fired the starting gun on mainstream Avalanche adoption. Their SEC filing positions AVAX alongside bitcoin and ether in the race for spot ETF approval—a move that could funnel billions into Avalanche's ecosystem.
Why This Matters
Traditional finance can't ignore institutional demand anymore. Pension funds, endowments, and wealth managers now have a potential path to AVAX exposure without self-custody headaches. The filing signals maturing infrastructure for layer-1 alternatives beyond the big two.
The Regulatory Gauntlet
SEC scrutiny will be brutal—but Bitwise's track record with bitcoin ETFs suggests they know how to navigate Washington's obsession with 'investor protection' (read: bureaucratic gatekeeping). Approval isn't guaranteed, but the filing itself pressures rivals to step up their altcoin game.
Because nothing makes legacy finance move faster than FOMO of missing the next fee-generating product.
Bitwise submits a proposal for its Avalanche ETF to the SEC
In Bitwise’s S-1 filing dated September 15, the crypto-asset manager mentioned that the Trust allows investors to access the Avalanche market via a regular brokerage account. According to the firm, this enables them to avoid problems and risks associated with purchasing and holding Avalanche directly.
Apart from that, the company argued that they believed the Trust’s design could assist certain investors in effectively implementing their strategic and tactical asset allocation strategies with Avalanche. Bitwise highlighted that this can be achieved by investing in Shares instead of purchasing, holding, and trading Avalanche.
The SEC filing disclosed that the fund will determine its net asset value (NAV) depending on the CME CF Avalanche–Dollar Reference Rate, adding that it will retain AVAX tokens directly and will not apply any derivatives.
In the meantime, it is worth noting that to obtain the NAV of an ETF, one needs to calculate the total value of its assets minus any liabilities, then divide it by the number of available shares, which will indicate the value per share of the fund.
Bitwise’s proposal triggers other crypto asset managers to apply for a spot AVAX ETF
Bitwise was initially founded in 2017. Since then, it has positioned itself as a leading international crypto-asset manager offering several crypto investment alternatives, such as crypto index funds and ETFs that track Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other asset management services.
The crypto-asset manager has also achieved other significant milestones this year. To illustrate, it recently developed an Avalanche trust in Delaware, initiating a first step towards releasing the product.
Concerning Bitwise’s proposal for its Avalanche ETF, it has triggered a trend among other crypto asset manager rivals to apply for a spot AVAX ETF. To support this claim, reports from sources have revealed that Grayscale, an asset manager and investment platform, has requested to change its Avalanche Trust into a spot AVAX ETF. Moreover, VanEck, an asset management company, is considering launching an AVAX fund.
To further expand its operations, the Avalanche Foundation made public its intention to raise around $1 billion purposefully to develop two AVAX treasury firms in the US last week. The foundation stated that these companies will purchase tokens from them at a reduced price.
It is worth noting that digital asset treasuries, similar to ETFs, provide investors with an alternative method of participating in the crypto markets via regular brokerage accounts.
Meanwhile, Bitwise has submitted applications requesting to list several single-asset ETFs, including those that can track chainlink and XRP’s performance.
According to data from CoinMarketCap, AVAX is currently trading at $29.54, indicating a 0.25% decrease in the last 24 hours.
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