Key Takeaways:
- SEC approved T. Rowe Price's Active Crypto ETF that can hold SHIB tokens
- SHIB fell 1.4% to $0.00000487, down 29% year-to-date
- The milestone marks SHIB's first regulated ETF exposure in the US
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SHIB gains first US ETF access in $1.8T T. Rowe Price fund
T. Rowe Price Group won SEC approval for an actively managed crypto ETF that can hold Shiba Inu tokens, marking the memecoin's first regulated US fund exposure.
"Just a meme coin, they said," Shiba Inu's official X account posted Wednesday, countering years of skepticism that memecoins lack institutional-grade credentials.
T. Rowe Price, a Baltimore-based investment firm managing over $1 trillion in assets, classified SHIB among the fund's eligible assets alongside Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, XRP and Dogecoin. The fund, which will list on NYSE Arca under ticker TKNZ, can hold between five and 15 digital assets at any time from a broader list of 15 eligible tokens. Dogecoin is expected to take a larger allocation, potentially 4% to 6% of the portfolio, while SHIB's allocation is estimated at 1% to 3%.
The approval opens a regulated on-ramp for mainstream investors seeking memecoin exposure without buying tokens directly. Trading for the fund has not yet begun.
SHIB traded at $0.00000487 as of 06:30 UTC Thursday, down 1.4% over the past 24 hours, according to CoinGecko. The token has lost 29% of its value year-to-date and 58% over the past year.
The milestone comes as SHIB faces pressure on multiple fronts. The token lost its position as the second-most valuable memecoin by market cap to MemeCore, a newer entrant. Sentiment weakened after last year's breach of Shibarium, SHIB's Layer-2 network on Ethereum, during which over $4 million in cryptocurrency was stolen.
Reduced visibility of Shytoshi Kusama, the pseudonymous lead developer who steered the SHIB ecosystem since founder Ryoshi's exit in 2022, has also dampened enthusiasm. Kusama has redirected attention to AI projects in recent months.
The ETF approval does not guarantee SHIB will be held in the fund. The actively managed strategy allows T. Rowe Price's investment team to adjust holdings, meaning SHIB's allocation could vary over time. No major asset manager has filed for a standalone SHIB spot ETF in the US.
The inclusion of memecoins in a regulated product from a traditional asset manager shows a shift in how Wall Street views the sector. T. Rowe Price's move could pressure other large fund managers to consider similar products, potentially expanding the addressable market for tokens that began as internet jokes.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
