21Shares files for Hyperliquid ETF following wave of crypto fund launches

A new proposal for an exchange-traded fund tracking the performance of Hyperliquid's native HYPE token was filed by 21Shares on Wednesday morning, following several similar fund launches this week.

One of the largest managers of exchange-traded products submitted a Form S-1 registration statement for the 21Shares Hyperliquid ETF with the Securities and Exchange Commission. It does not yet have a ticker symbol. 21Shares US LLC is the sponsor, and Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC and BitGO Trust Company, Inc. are the custodians, according to the filing. 

21Shares follows crypto asset manager Bitwise, which filed a proposal for its Bitwise Hyperliquid ETF in September. HYPE is the 16th largest crypto by market capitalization, according to The Block's price page. It functions as a Layer 1 blockchain specifically built for decentralized finance applications. 

Last week, prime broker Falcon X agreed to acquire 21Shares. The move is poised to combine 21Shares’ distribution and ETP expertise with FalconX’s trading and prime-brokerage infrastructure as the pair looks to launch derivative-focused and structured crypto funds, fielding products that go beyond plain-vanilla spot ETPs, The Wall Street Journal reported.

ETF debuts

This week, Grayscale, Bitwise and Canary forge ahead with launching ETFs tracking a variety of cryptocurrencies, including Solana, Litecoin and HBAR. Those launches happened as the U.S. is close to entering its second month of being shut down after Congress failed to approve funding, leaving the SEC significantly limited and many of its staff furloughed.

A week after the shutdown, the agency released guidance clarifying procedures for firms seeking to go public. In it, the SEC said that if firms want to go public, they can file a Form S-1 registration statement without what's called a "delaying amendment," essentially meaning that firms can go live with their products after 20 days. 

Before the shutdown, the SEC approved listing standards proposed by three exchanges, asking the agency to change a rule governing the trading and listing of commodity-based trust shares, which sets out specific requirements to have certain shares listed on their exchanges. The approval also meant dozens of crypto ETF applications could go live more quickly. Firms looking to launch crypto ETFs without the SEC's sign-off need to meet the listing standard.