Nasdaq Files to List 21Shares Polkadot ETF One Month After Cboe Filing

Nasdaq has submitted a request to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to allow 21Shares to list and trade shares of a Polkadot exchange-traded fund (ETF).

The 19b-4 filing requests for the fund to provide investors with direct exposure to DOT by tracking its spot price.

21Shares has been actively seeking regulatory approvals for cryptocurrencies including XRP, SOL, as well as DOT in the past. Last month, 21Shares filed to list a proposed 21Shares Polkadot Trust on the Cboe BZX Exchange, tracking Polkadot’s price in US dollars with Coinbase expected to act as the custodian.

At the time, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart said the filing has triggered the "most hate" he has "ever seen an ETF filing get."

The filing wasn't the first time 21Shares has offered a Polkadot-linked product. In 2021, 21Shares launched a Polkadot ETP in Switzerland. However, the fund has struggled to gain traction, recording just 240,000 shares in 90-day trading volume.

Nasdaq also recently submitted an application for a 19b-4 rules change that would see the Grayscale Polkadot Trust begin trading on the exchange if approved.

“The Shares [of the Trust] are designed to provide investors with a cost-effective and convenient way to gain investment exposure to DOT,” the filing stated.

DOT is currently the 20th largest cryptocurrency with a market cap of slightly over $7 billion. Its price is up almost 12.5% this week, vastly outperforming Bitcoin's 0.5% rise over the same period.

21Shares' latest DOT ETF filing comes as the asset manager plans to liquidate two of its actively managed ETFs that track Bitcoin and Ethereum futures.

The two funds, the ARK 21Shares Active On-Chain Bitcoin Strategy ETF (ARKC) and the ARK 21Shares Active Bitcoin Ethereum Strategy ETF (ARKY), will cease trading after the market closes on March 27. Liquidation set to occur on or around March 28.