VanEck’s Filing Opens a New Frontier On August 22, the Jito Foundation announced that investment manager VanEck had filed an S-1 registration statement with the SEC for a novel exchange-traded fund. Unlike traditional spot crypto ETFs, the proposed VanEck JitoSOL ETF would be exclusively composed of JitoSOL, a liquid staking token representing staked Solana plus its accrued rewards. The foundation emphasized that the filing followed months of legal and policy coordination with SEC staff, aiming to position liquid staking tokens within the regulator’s evolving framework. The Regulatory Blueprint Behind JitoSOL ETF Rebecca Rettig, Chief Legal Officer at Jito Foundation, began laying the groundwork in March with a legal report arguing that JitoSOL functions as decentralized infrastructure rather than a security. Subsequent SEC staff statements in May and August aligned with this interpretation, offering clarity around staking and liquid staking tokens. These regulatory developments created the pathway for VanEck’s ETF proposal, marking the first serious attempt to integrate a liquid staking token into a regulated product. Why JitoSOL Matters for Investors Traditional staking locks assets during unbonding periods, creating liquidity challenges for ETFs. By using JitoSOL as the underlying asset, VanEck’s ETF eliminates this bottleneck, enabling seamless daily creations and redemptions while still earning staking rewards on SOL. This structure bridges a critical gap between crypto’s yield opportunities and the operational needs of institutional investment products. Institutional Race to Capture Yield VanEck’s move follows closely after REX-Osprey announced plans to integrate JitoSOL into its own Solana staking ETF. The near-simultaneous filings highlight a growing institutional race to deliver yield-bearing strategies within compliant, regulated wrappers. The trend reflects a broader industry shift: asset managers are moving beyond spot exposure toward innovative products that bring crypto-native yield into traditional finance.
