Canary Capital Files for First PENGU NFT ETF
1min read Canary Capital has submitted a registration filing to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the launch of the first-ever Pengu exchange-traded fund (ETF). This move adds to the growing list of crypto asset managers seeking regulatory approval for digital asset-based ETFs.
The proposed ETF will invest in the PENGU token, which is the official token of the Pudgy Penguins NFT project, as well as in Pudgy Penguins NFTs themselves. The filing also states that the ETF will hold other digital assets, including Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL), to support trading and transfers.
Ask Aime: What impact does Canary Capital's Pengu ETF filing have on the cryptocurrency market?
In the registration statement, the ETF is defined as an investment trust that invests in digital assets such as PENGU tokens and Pudgy Penguins NFTs, among others. Canary Capital emphasized that these holdings are critical for monitoring the token and the NFT assets. If launched, the ETF will allow investors to track the price of PENGU and other NFTs in its portfolio without owning or hosting them as physical assets. The trust may also contain other assets in the form of digital media for the buying and selling besides conversion and redemption of the fund.
The Pudgy Penguins project released the Ethereum-linked PENGU token in December. The project has been popular in the crypto sphere as a collection of NFT and social networking. Although PENGU was first developed on Ethereum, there is a growing sentiment that it can be regarded as a Solana meme coin since most of its trading activity transpires in Solana platforms.
Canary Capital is not the only firm pursuing ETF approval for non-traditional digital assets. In recent months, several asset managers have submitted filings for altcoin ETFs, including ones focused on Dogecoin (DOGE), Sui, Hedera, and BONK. These filings followed the approval of spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs by the SEC in 2024. Despite the recent trend, the SEC has delayed decisions on many of these applications, especially those involving meme coins and smaller tokens. Some market participants have raised questions about whether ETFs for meme coins and NFTs will meet regulatory standards.
The ETF proposal has sparked different responses from traders and analysts online. Some have raised doubts about investor demand for a fund tied to a meme coin and NFT project that is less than six months old. Social media commentator @beast_ico wrote, “We don’t need ETFs for ghost chains, much less sub 6 month old memecoins.” Others noted that despite the ETF news, the price reaction was short-lived, and sustained momentum may depend on broader market trends. Industry observer Alex Krüger commented, “New ETFs for crypto assets have become an irrelevant joke,” citing weak asset inflows into recently launched funds.
