Grayscale files Form S-1 for a Bittensor Trust ETP

Grayscale, a U.S.-based crypto asset manager, has filed for a Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission today. The asset manager aims to provide regulated access to its clients to the Bittensor TAO token, pushing decentralized AI into crypto markets.

GTAO approval by the SEC would mark the first U.S.-listed ETP offering exposure to the TAO token and the first one for Grayscale. The Bittensor blockchain has recently garnered market attention as investors and developers seek exposure to AI-related projects beyond current blockchain platforms, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.

TAO records a negative 52% YTD and 70% drop from its ATH

TAO, the native token of Bittensor Trust, has a market capitalization of $2.3 billion, with an average 24-hour trading volume of $72 million, according to CoinMarketCap data. The TAO token has recorded its worst performance this year, losing more than half of its value from a high of $555 in January to roughly $220. The token saw a massive surge at its launch, marking 174437% from its all-time low of $30. The token has since lost 70% of its all-time high of $767, reached in April 2024. At the time of publication, the token was up 0.33% trading at $220.33.

Meanwhile, Grayscale’s initiative to list Bittensor Trust as an ETP marks the first in the U.S., after Deutsche Digital Assets, a Germany-regulated provider of exchange-traded products (ETPs), confirmed that it would list a Bittensor ETP. For the German entity, Bittensor ETP would be listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange under the ticker symbol STAO. The Gearman Deutsche Digital Assets announced at the end of October that it will list STAO with the assistance of Safello, a Nasdaq Nordic-listed broker.

Bittensor operates as an open-source blockchain protocol that is unique in its own right, connecting AI through a marketplace where models collaborate, compete, and are rewarded in TAO. According to a report by 21shares, Bittensor is rewarding developers for advancing AI models, serving three main goals: staking, governance, and utility.

Barry Silbert, chairman of Grayscale, wrote on X today that the move to file for an S-1 form with the SEC underscores the rapid growth of decentralized AI, and his firm is pioneering initial access.

Grayscale bets on regulation to fuel the next wave of crypto adoption

Today’s filing follows Grayscale’s October Form 10 filing for Bittensor Trust, a step toward making it an SEC Reporting Company. The filing increased TAO’s accessibility, transparency, and regulatory status. Grayscale outlined five key steps, including seeking to quote GTAO shares on the OTC Markets, registering the Trust, filing Form 10-Ks and 10-Qs, and auditing financial reports with the SEC. The asset manager also promised to reduce the holding period from 12 months to six months for its private placement, moving the Trust one step closer to becoming an ETP.

So far, approval is not yet guaranteed, but the filing reflects how crypto asset managers are moving to package new crypto advancements, including decentralized AI as regulated assets. Recently, Grayscale released its 2026 outlook for the crypto market, and the firm predicts that ETPs will increase tenfold in 2026.

According to a recent Cryptopolitan report, the crypto asset manager believes clearer crypto regulations could accelerate institutional adoption in 2026 and increase on-chain activity. The asset manager projected that a bipartisan crypto asset bill will be passed in 2026, paving the way for traditional financial rules to be applied to digital asset classes. This means that traditional finance frameworks, such as registration, disclosure requirements, asset classifications, and insider trading protections, will be applied in digital markets, driving crypto adoption led by regulated investors.