Trillion-Dollar Legacy Asset Manager Enters Crypto Space with ETF Covering XRP, Solana, Cardano, Shiba Inu

A $1.8 trillion mutual fund giant is seeking approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for its first crypto-based exchange-traded fund (ETF), marking a bold move into the digital assets industry.

T. Rowe Price surprised onlookers after filing for an S-1 registration statement with the SEC on Wednesday to introduce the T. Rowe Price Active Crypto ETF.

T. Rowe Price’s Leap Into Crypto ETFs With New Application

The application states that the fund is expected to hold five to 15 crypto assets that are eligible under the SEC’s generic listing standards, which include Bitcoin, Ether, Solana, XRP, Cardano, Avalanche, Litecoin, Polkadot, Dogecoin, Bitcoin Cash, Chainlink, Stellar Lumen, and Shiba Inu. These listing standards, recently approved by the SEC, significantly shorten the timeline for crypto ETFs to start trading.

If approved, the fund would give investors active exposure to digital assets, a significant shift that would shake up its largely mutual fund-focused offerings.

Bloomberg’s senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas noted in a post on X that the filing was a “SEMI-SHOCK,” remarking that T. Rowe has focused mainly on mutual funds across its 87-year history.

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“Did not expect it but I get it,” Balchunas wrote. “There’s gonna be land rush for this space too.”

However, T. Rowe Price has been signaling interest in crypto for a while now. During an ETF conference in Las Vegas earlier this year, Dominic Rizzo, who manages the company’s technology-focused ETF, suggested that now is a good time to consider Bitcoin exposure. He compared the crypto’s price to that of a commodity, saying it closely tracks the cost of mining it.

Having long focused on mutual funds, T. Rowe Price’s foray into crypto ETFs comes after other legacy asset managers such as BlackRock and Fidelity had rushed to list such vehicles to overwhelming success.

“Can’t overstate significance of T. Rowe Price filing for an actively managed crypto ETF out of left field,” President of NovaDius Wealth Management, Nate Geraci, posited. “A firm founded in 1937 is now building out the full infrastructure to handle crypto trading and manage a crypto ETF.”

US Government Shutdown Stalls Progress On Crypto ETFs

The T. Rowe Price Active Crypto ETF joins a growing list of over 155 crypto-related exchange-traded fund applications currently at the SEC’s desk.

Most of these applications, including ones for Ripple’s XRP and Solana, are in limbo amid the US government shutdown, which is now in its 22nd day.