BlackRock Addresses Burning XRP ETF Question: Is A Filing Coming Or Not?

The world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock, has broken its silence on whether it intends to file for an XRP ETF. This follows months of speculation that the firm could soon file to offer this fund. 

A BlackRock spokesperson told The Block that they have no plans to file for an XRP ETF at this time. This ends speculations that it will join eight other asset managers who have already filed to offer this fund. The world’s largest asset manager already offers Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, and based on the statement, the firm plans to stick with only the two largest crypto assets. 

NovaDius Wealth President Nate Geraci was one of those who had speculated that BlackRock was going to file for an XRP ETF soon. Prior to the asset manager’s statement, Geraci opined that the firm was waiting for the Ripple SEC lawsuit to end before filing for an iShares XRP ETF. He made this prediction following Ripple and the SEC’s filing of a joint dismissal to end the XRP lawsuit. 

Geraci further remarked that it makes “zero” sense for BlackRock to ignore crypto assets beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum. He added that if they do that, they are basically saying that BTC and ETH are the only crypto assets that will ever have value. Following BlackRock’s statement, the NovaDius Wealth president said that the firm’s decision not to file for an XRP ETF will be looked on as a mistake. 

Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas also weighed in on BlackRock’s decision not to file for an XRP ETF. He asked Geraci if an XRP filing is enough or if he feels the world’s largest asset manager should also file for SOL, Tron ETFs. He further questioned where exactly the line should be drawn on how many crypto ETFs asset managers should offer. 

Nate Geraci believes that there will be significant demand for the XRP ETFs, which is one reason why he thinks BlackRock is making a mistake by not filing for one. He noted that futures-based XRP funds have taken in over $1 billion since their launch this year. He opined that this proves that there will be “real” demand for the spot funds.  

Pro-XRP lawyer John Deaton is confident that BlackRock will still file for an XRP ETF. He said that he is willing to bet that this happens within a year. BlackRock’s failure to file for this ETF now and opt to do so later could prove costly since the pending applications could have the first-mover advantage. According to Bloomberg analysts James Seyffart and Eric Balchunas, there is a 95% chance that the SEC approves these funds this year.

At the time of writing, the XRP price is trading at around $3.26, down in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.