The U.S. crypto industry’s long-anticipated exchange-traded fund surge has been brought to a standstill - not by market volatility, but by politics.
With the federal government shutdown now in effect, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has gone quiet, forcing the agency to halt its review of roughly 90 digital asset ETF filings. What was expected to be a defining quarter for institutional crypto adoption has abruptly turned into an indefinite waiting period.
An Empty Regulator
The SEC, operating with only a fraction of its staff, has shelved most nonessential activity, including ETF evaluations. For issuers like VanEck and other asset managers, that means applications sit untouched until Congress passes a funding bill to reopen the agency.
The freeze comes at a particularly sensitive moment. Just before the shutdown, the SEC had started fast-tracking approvals through a new simplified registration system, designed to shorten the usual multi-month process. The first wave of greenlights was expected in mid-October – until everything stopped.
Solana and XRP Take Center Stage
At the top of the queue are two names that symbolize how far the crypto market has evolved beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum. Solana leads with 10 ETF proposals, while XRP follows closely with nine.
Together, they represent the growing institutional appetite for altcoins — once considered too speculative for Wall Street’s taste.
Trailing behind are Ethereum with five pending applications, and Dogecoin and Binance Coin with four each. Even smaller projects like Cardano, Hedera, and Sui have made their way into ETF filings, showing just how diverse the next wave of crypto investment products has become.
Billions Waiting for a Signature
Industry analysts estimate that once the SEC resumes work, between $5 billion and $10 billion in capital could enter the market almost immediately through new ETF launches.
That figure would mark one of the largest single bursts of institutional inflow in crypto history – potentially rivaling the Bitcoin ETF boom earlier this year.
But the longer Washington’s budget impasse drags on, the more momentum evaporates. Several legal experts warn that if the standoff extends for weeks, the entire ETF rollout could be pushed into 2026, delaying another round of mainstream adoption.
Politics Meets Blockchain
The stalling of the ETF review process is a reminder that the U.S. crypto industry remains deeply tethered to federal bureaucracy.
“The irony,” one analyst noted, “is that digital finance moves at the speed of code – but in the U.S., it’s being held hostage by politics.”
For now, the silence at the SEC has frozen one of the most anticipated financial milestones of the year.
Whether America’s crypto ETF revolution resumes this fall – or is left to gather dust until 2026 – now depends less on traders or technology, and more on Capitol Hill’s ability to keep the lights on.
