The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has unveiled new listing standards requiring cryptocurrency tokens to demonstrate at least six months of futures trading on a Designated Contract Market (DCM) before qualifying for Exchange Traded Product (ETP) listings. This mandate aims to ensure market maturity and sufficient liquidity for underlying assets while guarding against manipulation in emerging investment vehicles.
The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) recently identified 18 tokens meeting the SEC’s criteria, including prominent assets like Litecoin (LTC), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Cardano (ADA). The submissions signal institutional readiness to broaden crypto ETP offerings beyond the established Bitcoin and Ethereum products currently trading on U.S. exchanges.
Crucially, the standards enforce surveillance-sharing agreements between ETP sponsors and designated markets to monitor trading activity for irregularities. These protocols form a cornerstone of the SEC’s approval framework, designed to detect and prevent market manipulation through coordinated oversight mechanisms.
The clarified regulatory pathway is projected to accelerate the introduction of new cryptocurrency ETPs on American exchanges. This development reflects growing institutional acceptance of digital assets and addresses longstanding demands for transparent eligibility benchmarks.
This announcement builds upon the SEC’s earlier authorization of in-kind creation/redemption processes for spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, a move that streamlined operations for issuers including BlackRock and Fidelity. The latest standards expand this regulatory infrastructure to encompass a wider array of crypto assets seeking mainstream market access.