Bitwise Solana ETF Hits Record $56M on First Day

BSOL’s $56 million opening day volume represents a watershed moment for cryptocurrency investment products, outperforming the previous 2025 leader, the REX-Osprey XRP ETF (XRPR), by more than $18 million. According to Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas, who had accurately predicted BSOL would reach $52 million on its opening day, the final figure of $56 million establishes a new benchmark for ETF launches across all asset classes. The comparison with XRPR is particularly telling – while XRPR managed $37.7 million on its September 18 debut, with $24 million coming within the first 90 minutes, BSOL’s sustained investor interest throughout the trading day demonstrated even stronger market conviction.

The launch was executed by Bitwise Asset Management on Nasdaq under the Securities Act of 1933, providing investors with direct exposure to SOL while offering approximately 7% staking rewards and temporarily waiving management fees. This attractive value proposition, combined with Solana’s established position as one of the market’s most liquid cryptocurrencies with a $107 billion market cap and $7.7 billion in daily trading volume, created the perfect conditions for record-breaking demand.

BSOL’s successful debut was part of a strategic trio of crypto fund launches that included ETFs for Hedera (HBAR) and Litecoin (LTC), which recorded first-day volumes of $8 million and $1 million respectively. The timing and execution of these launches were particularly noteworthy given the current U.S. government shutdown. The funds reached the market through an automatic legal provision that allowed their registrations to proceed without manual approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), demonstrating the evolving regulatory pathways for cryptocurrency investment products.

This regulatory workaround proved crucial in maintaining momentum for crypto ETF approvals during a period of government inactivity. The success of BSOL and its companion funds highlights how the cryptocurrency industry is adapting to navigate regulatory challenges while continuing to provide institutional-grade investment vehicles to mainstream investors.

Despite BSOL’s record-breaking debut, Solana’s price action presented a mixed picture. At the time of reporting, SOL was trading around $195, representing a 2.3% decline over the previous 24 hours but maintaining a 5.1% gain over the past week. This suggests that while the ETF news didn’t trigger an immediate price surge, it may have contributed to positive medium-term sentiment toward the asset. The 7.1% decline over the past 30 days contrasts with a modest 7.6% gain over the previous year, indicating SOL’s position as a volatile but fundamentally strong asset.

The strong institutional interest in BSOL could signal a broader trend of increasing crypto adoption among traditional investors. Analysts suggest that the ETF’s performance may spark further interest from institutional players, potentially helping to stabilize prices in the short term while building long-term confidence in cryptocurrency investment products. The upcoming conversion of Grayscale’s Solana Trust (GSOL) into an ETF on October 29 will further expand investor options within the Solana ecosystem, creating additional avenues for institutional participation.

BSOL’s unprecedented success demonstrates that investor appetite for cryptocurrency exposure through regulated, traditional financial instruments continues to grow. The combination of staking rewards, temporary fee waivers, and direct asset exposure through a major exchange like Nasdaq represents a compelling package that resonates with both crypto-native and traditional investors. As the cryptocurrency ETF landscape evolves, BSOL’s record-setting debut may well be remembered as a turning point in institutional crypto adoption.