Nikolas Sargeant
The Solana ETF is currently in its pre-operational stage, awaiting approval from the Brazilian stock exchange, B3. This ETF will track the CME CF Solana Dollar Reference Rate, developed by CF Benchmarks with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME).
QR Asset, a Brazilian asset manager, will offer the ETF, while Vortx, a local fintech specializing in capital markets, will manage it. "This ETF reaffirms our commitment to offering quality and diversification to Brazilian investors.
We are proud to be global pioneers in this segment, consolidating Brazil’s position as a leading market for regulated investments in crypto assets," stated Theodoro Fleury, manager and chief investment officer of QR Asset.
Brazil has shown a strong interest in ETFs recently, listing both Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs on B3 between 2021 and 2022. In March 2024, B3 also began offering BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT).
In the U.S., Cboe has requested the SEC to allow asset managers VanEck and 21Shares to introduce a Solana-based ETF, though this request is still pending approval.
Franklin Templeton, an asset management firm, recently endorsed Solana’s progress in decentralized finance (DeFi), meme coins, and NFT innovation, highlighting these achievements in a post on X during Q4 2023. Hamilton Lane, a leading firm in alternative assets, launched its first institutional fund on Solana, praising the blockchain’s low latency and high throughput as ideal for tokenization.
Brazil Warming Up to Digital Assets
Brazil is increasingly embracing digital assets and blockchain technology. Last year, the country announced plans to issue digital identification documents for its 214 million citizens using blockchain. Alexandre Amorim, president of Serpro, emphasized that blockchain technology is crucial for protecting personal data and preventing fraud, enhancing the security and reliability of the National Identity Card project.
Additionally, Brazil is progressing in developing a central bank digital currency (CBDC). In August, the government shared more details about the project, now rebranded as Drex. This CBDC aims to expand business access to capital through a tokenization system associated with Drex.
