VanEck's JitoSOL ETF: The SEC's Next Liquid Staking Tango

Nasdaq has just slid a new proposal onto the SEC's desk, asking to list the VanEck JitoSOL ETF—a fund that would let investors trade shares backed by the Solana liquid staking token JitoSOL (JTO). If the green light flashes, it would offer exposure to SOL staked in Jito's pool, with the staking rewards automatically baked into the token's price like yield-bearing digital cake.

Jito Foundation president Brian Smith explained to Cointelegraph that the fund's net asset value would capture both the base SOL and the accrued staking yield, so there's no need for pesky separate reward drops—it's all one delicious, compounding smoothie. The filing is made under Nasdaq Rule 5711(d), the same rulebook section for commodity-based trust shares, and aims to list shares that directly hold JitoSOL tokens.

For the uninitiated, JitoSOL is a liquid staking derivative that represents SOL locked in a staking pool, letting holders collect rewards without the hassle of running a validator node—perfect for the passive-income enjoyer. The filing cleverly uses the SEC's own past plays, pointing to the approved spot Bitcoin and Ether ETPs as precedent, arguing it meets the same anti-fraud and market surveillance standards, even though there's no regulated futures market for JitoSOL to hide behind.

The trust plans to price its shares using the MarketVector JitoSol VWAP Close Index, pulling data from several exchanges, and would allow both cash and in-kind creations and redemptions—because flexibility is key when you're dancing with regulators. The submission also throws some correlation charts on the table, arguing that JitoSOL moves in economic lockstep with SOL, hoping to fit neatly into the generic listing standards the SEC blessed last September.

The SEC now has a classic regulatory timer of 45 days (with a potential 90-day extension) from the Federal Register publication to make a move. While this would be the first U.S. ETF for a liquid staking token, getting staking exposure through a regulated wrapper isn't entirely new. The REX-Osprey Solana + Staking ETF (SSK) launched on July 2, and its Ethereum sibling (ESK) followed in September. Not to be outdone, Grayscale has turned on staking for its Ethereum and Solana trusts, with its Solana Trust (GSOL) currently waiting in line for uplist approval.

Across the pond, 21Shares already launched a Jito-staked Solana ETP back in January, because Europe loves to party first and ask questions later. According to DefiLlama, Jito's total value locked is currently sitting at about $1.1 billion, a comedown from its 2025 peak above $3 billion—a classic DeFi rollercoaster ride.

The SEC's Division of Corporation Finance has previously hinted that most protocol staking activities aren't securities offerings, but let's be real: those are just guidance whispers, not binding rulemaking, and offer zero guarantees that this particular product will get a regulatory hug.