Grayscale withdraws three altcoin ETF filings as SEC pipeline narrows

Grayscale pulled three ETF registration statements for Cardano, Hedera, and Polkadot in a 190-second window on Aug. 7, leaving five other altcoin filings at preliminary stages.

Grayscale Investments withdrew SEC registration statements for its Cardano, Hedera, and Polkadot ETF products on Aug. 7, with the three Form RW filings accepted just 190 seconds apart, according to EDGAR records.

The filings, submitted under Rule 477, state that Grayscale "does not intend to proceed with the proposed distribution of shares" and that no securities had been issued or sold under the registrations, according to the SEC's EDGAR database.

The sequence began with the Grayscale Cardano Trust ETF at 4:33:37 p.m. ET, followed by the Hedera Trust ETF at 4:34:55 p.m. and the Polkadot Trust ETF at 4:36:47 p.m. The withdrawals follow the earlier removal of exchange-listing proposals — NYSE Arca withdrew the Cardano 19b-4 on Sept. 29, 2025, while Nasdaq withdrew the Polkadot and Hedera proposals on Nov. 3, 2025.

The move leaves five other Grayscale altcoin registrations — Bittensor, Aave, BNB, NEAR, and Zcash — in preliminary status, while the Avalanche and Hyperliquid staking ETFs have reached effectiveness. The withdrawals come as Cardano's six-month CME futures seasoning window expires Aug. 9, technically clearing the eligibility prerequisite for a spot ADA ETF under the SEC's generic listing standards.

The withdrawals are requests to withdraw S-1 registration statements, not SEC orders rejecting the proposed ETFs. The documents provide no commercial or regulatory reason for ending the registrations beyond the decision not to proceed.

The SEC had approved generic exchange listing standards for qualifying commodity-based trust shares in September 2025. Eligible spot digital-asset products can use those standards without a product-specific Section 19(b) proposal, but the change did not make a registration statement effective or eliminate Securities Act requirements.

What Remains in the Pipeline

As of an Aug. 8 review of EDGAR records, registration statements for proposed Bittensor, Aave, and BNB exchange-traded products remained preliminary and had not become effective. Cited registration statements for proposed NEAR and Zcash products also remained preliminary.

Two Grayscale altcoin staking products had reached a later registration milestone. The SEC declared the registration statements for the Grayscale Avalanche Staking ETF and Grayscale Hyperliquid Staking ETF effective on March 11 and June 2, respectively.

Cardano's Eligibility Window

The withdrawals come as Cardano's six-month CME futures seasoning clock expires Aug. 9, a Sunday. The SEC does not process filings on weekends, meaning the earliest an exchange could file paperwork to activate a spot ADA listing under the generic standard is Monday, Aug. 10. If activated, a 75-day SEC review window would point to a decision around Oct. 23.

ADA traded at $0.1986 as of 03:37 UTC on Aug. 9, pressing the psychological $0.20 level without a verified UTC daily close above it. Futures open interest sat at roughly $488 million, well below the July 21 all-time high of about $1.66 billion, according to CoinGlass data.

The market showed no significant reaction to the withdrawals, suggesting investors view the move as a focused adjustment rather than a strategic retreat from the altcoin ETF space. Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs remain unaffected.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.