Recently, Bitcoin has seen some price volatility, but altcoins have been gaining momentum.
While many speculated that altcoin season had arrived, Grayscale’s move to apply for a spot Solana ETF has intensified hopes for more altcoin ETFs. However, Bitget CEO Gracy Chen warned that the road to approval for these altcoin ETFs remains challenging.
In an interview with Bloomberg TV, Chen outlined key obstacles preventing the approval of spot ETFs for altcoins like Solana (SOL), XRP, and Dogecoin (DOGE). She pointed to the lack of futures ETFs for these assets as a significant hurdle, noting that Bitcoin and Ethereum saw futures ETFs approved before their spot ETF counterparts. Without similar futures products for altcoins, the approval process is slowed down.
Chen also mentioned that some regulators still view tokens like Solana as securities, which complicates the regulatory landscape and could delay approval. Additionally, she highlighted that although many altcoins share a decentralized structure with Bitcoin and Ethereum, they are more vulnerable to market manipulation. This elevated risk makes altcoin ETFs a tougher sell compared to those for BTC and ETH.
As for Bitcoin, Chen suggested that the fluctuations around the $100,000 mark are short-term and driven by “arbitrage” sentiment. She explained that while US cryptocurrency regulations are becoming more favorable, investor uncertainty has led to price dips, which many see as buying opportunities. This back-and-forth cycle of buying on dips and speculating on future growth is contributing to Bitcoin’s ongoing price volatility.
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Retail investors are increasingly favoring XRP over Bitcoin, as Glassnode data shows a dramatic 490% increase in XRP’s daily active addresses, compared to just 10% for Bitcoin since the 2022 market low.