BlackRock CIO Samara Cohen confirms no plans for Solana ETF, citing Bitcoin and Ethereum as meeting expectations.
During a recent interview with Bloomberg on Monday, July 29, BlackRock CIO for ETF and Index Investments, Samara Cohen, confirmed that the asset manager is not currently pursuing any ETFs, including the spot Solana ETF, shortly.
She also stated that while Bitcoin and Ethereum exceeded their expectations, no other crypto asset comes close to them.
Ethereum accounts for 17% of the total crypto market, while Bitcoin accounts for 55%. The contributions of the remaining altcoins are all below the double-digit threshold.
Consequently, introducing additional crypto ETFs, such as the Solana ETF, into the market may raise concerns regarding liquidity and manipulation.
Cohen of BlackRock stated that the market is not yet ready for additional crypto ETFs, such as Solana, due to significant technical challenges. In an interview with Bloomberg, Cohen stated:
“We really look at the investability to see what meets the criteria, what meets the bar to be delivered in an ETF. For us, both in terms of investability and also what we hear from our clients, Bitcoin and Ethereum definitely meet that bar, but it will be a while before we see anything else.”
Samara Cohen reiterated the stance of Robert Mitchnick, BlackRock’s director of digital assets. Mitchnik stated at the Bitcoin conference last week that there is no potential for future crypto ETFs to be introduced to the market.
Conversely, VanEck and other asset managers are advocating for the Solana ETF, asserting that they are experiencing substantial demand from the crypto community.
The Solana price surpassed BNB for the fourth position last week. As of press time, SOL is trading at $182, a 5% decline amid the broader market sell-off.
BlackRock CIO Samara Cohen also announced that crypto ETFs would be included in the “Model portfolios” by the end of 2024.
She made this statement in response to a query regarding the extent to which major fund houses, including Wells Fargo, Morgan Stanley, and UBS, are considering onboarding and promoting crypto ETFs.
She also stated that all of these wirehouses are undertaking due diligence, risk analysis, and other assessments while considering the role of BTC and ETH in their portfolios.
BlackRock effectively introduced the Ethereum ETF to the market last week. BlackRock’s ETHA remains the most popular among its rivals in terms of inflows.
