The US approved the first Dogecoin ETF (DOJE) in 1940
The United States' first memecoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) is set to launch Thursday, marking the latest step in the expansion of regulated crypto products since the successful launch of Bitcoin and Ether funds last year.
In a social media post Tuesday, Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said the Rex-Osprey Doge ETF ( DOJE ) is set to launch Thursday.
“Certainly, this is a first-in-the-US ETF to hold something that has no utility or purpose,” Balchunas said.
Balchunas It hinted that it could begin last week under the Investment Company Act of 1940 — a separate framework from the Securities Act of 1933, which typically allows donor trusts to hold physical commodities or derivatives.
Dogecoin (DOGE) rallied ahead of the approval, rising nearly 13% last week, according to CoinMarketCap.
Widely regarded as the first true memecoin, Dogecoin has been trading for over a decade, building a large investor community and inspiring countless imitators that reflect different aspects of crypto culture. Today it boasts a capitalization of $36 billion.
Its inclusion in an ETF underscores the growing recognition that even memecoins can attract institutional interest — albeit mostly for speculative purposes.
Related: Spot ETH ETFs Bleed $1B in 6-Day Outflows as Rate Cut Optimism Fades
Several crypto ETFs are in the pipeline.
The SEC's approval of the Rex-Osprey Doge ETF comes as regulators weigh dozens of other crypto-based exchange-traded products, including assets ranging from Dogecoin to Solana (SOL) and XRP (XRP). Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seifert said last month that 92 such proposals are currently in the pipeline.
The first wave of crypto ETFs focused on Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH). In the year The launch of spot bitcoin ETFs in early 2024 was particularly classy among the most successful ETF launches on record, attracting tens of billions of dollars in inflows. After a slow start, demand for Ether funds has also increased significantly this year.
The expected wave of new crypto ETFs follows a shift in the SEC's approach to digital assets under US President Donald Trump. Besides referring to token support as a financial innovation, the agency explained that some liquidity-intensive activities fall outside the scope of securities laws.
Magazine: Bitcoin To See ‘One More Big Push' Toward $150K, ETH Builds Push: Trade Secrets
