Grayscale pulls 3 altcoin ETF filings in 190 seconds

Grayscale withdrew registration statements for three planned U.S. altcoin exchange traded products on Aug. 7, ending the current registration process for its Cardano, Hedera and Polkadot funds. 

SEC records show the three Form RW submissions were accepted between 4:33:37 p.m. and 4:36:47 p.m. ET, a span of exactly 190 seconds.

The filings are withdrawal requests, not SEC rejections. Grayscale said it no longer intends to proceed with the planned distribution of shares under those registration statements. It also confirmed that none had become effective and that no securities had been issued or sold.

Grayscale withdraws three S-1 registrations

The Cardano filing sought withdrawal of registration statement No. 333-289948, originally filed in August 2025. The Hedera request covered No. 333-290129, first filed in September 2025, while the Polkadot filing covered No. 333-289949, also first filed in August 2025.

Each request gives the same core explanation: the sponsor does not intend to proceed with the planned share distribution. The documents provide no separate commercial, demand related or regulatory reason. They also state that no preliminary prospectus had been distributed.

Meanwhile, the latest withdrawals follow earlier exits on the exchange listing side. SEC records show NYSE Arca withdrew its proposed rule change for the Grayscale Cardano Trust on Sept. 29, 2025. Nasdaq’s proposed rule changes for the Grayscale Polkadot Trust and Grayscale Hedera Trust were both withdrawn on Nov. 3, 2025.

Those exchange proposals were separate from the S-1 registrations withdrawn on Aug. 7. The Cardano review was covered as previously reported, while Nasdaq’s Polkadot proposal appeared in earlier related coverage. The Hedera review also entered the SEC process in March 2025, as crypto.news reported in its earlier coverage.

New SEC rules changed the crypto ETF approval route

The regulatory backdrop changed after those original exchange proposals were filed. In September 2025, the SEC approved generic listing standards allowing qualifying commodity based trust shares, including digital asset products, to list without a separate Section 19(b) rule change for each fund.

The faster exchange route does not replace Securities Act registration. A sponsor still needs an effective registration statement before selling shares. That distinction matters here because Grayscale withdrew the S-1 layer itself. A current overview of the U.S. ETF process explains how exchange listing and registration now operate separately.

What happens next for Grayscale’s altcoin ETF slate

Under Rule 477(b), an application to withdraw an entire registration statement before effectiveness is deemed granted when filed unless the SEC objects within 15 calendar days. The three requests therefore take effect without a separate approval order unless the Commission intervenes during that window.

The withdrawals do not establish that the SEC rejected ADA, HBAR or DOT products, and they do not prevent Grayscale from filing again later. For now, SEC records reviewed Aug. 10 show preliminary registrations for Bittensor, Aave, BNB, NEAR and Zcash at different stages. The Zcash registration received its third amendment on July 31.

Grayscale also has altcoin products further along. The SEC declared the Grayscale Avalanche Staking ETF registration effective on March 11 and the Grayscale Hyperliquid Staking ETF registration effective on June 2. Those differing statuses show the Aug. 7 filings are not evidence of a companywide retreat from altcoin exchange traded products.

What remains unknown is why Grayscale ended these three registrations together. The filings give no explanation beyond the decision not to proceed, leaving claims about investor demand, economics or regulatory resistance unconfirmed.