NYSE Arca Files 19b-4 For Grayscale's Cardano ETF; $ADA Surges, Outperforms $BTC, Other Altcoins

NYSE Arca, a subsidiary of the New York Stock Exchange, on Monday filed a 19b-4 form with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on behalf of Grayscale for the asset manager's proposed spot Cardano (ADA) exchange-traded fund (ETF), the Grayscale Cardano Trust.

News of the filing pumped the altcoin's price by over 11% amid anticipation for more cryptocurrency ETFs to be approved this year.

NYSE Arca Highlights Cardano Network's Benefits

In its filing, NYSE Arca noted how the Cardano blockchain is similar to the Ethereum network, wherein it was designed "to expand blockchain use beyond just a peer-to-peer money system."

The exchange also highlighted other notable features of the Cardano network:

• PoS mechanism – NYSE Arca said Cardano's proo-of-stake (PoS) mechanism allows for "lower energy consumption in the validation of the network" and also potentially enables faster transaction speeds;
• Developer incentives – The exchange said requiring ADA payments on the Cardano chain allows developers to be incentivized for writing quality applications and increasing efficiency;
• DeFi use – NYSE Arca said Cardano can be utilized for decentralized finance (DeFi) projects that seek to "democratize access to financial services while eliminating the need for third parties.

With the 19b-4 filing completed, Grayscale's spot ADA ETF will now wait for SEC acknowledgment before the regulator's approval process is initiated.

The approval process for crypto ETFs has taken years under the previous SEC leaderships, but with pro-innovation leaders appointed, it is expected that the process will be shorter this time around.

Will $ADA Rise Further in the Ranks This Year?

Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said the 19b-4 filing on behalf of Grayscale is the "first one in the U.S.," which means Grayscale could potentially be the first issuer of a Cardano ETF in the country, given that other institutions don't join the ADA ETF race soon and get approved first.

ADA is currently the world's ninth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, and has consistently been in the top 10 over the past year.

With a $26 billion market cap and trading volumes hitting over $800 million in the last 24 hours alone, ADA is demonstrating resilience.

It has also outperformed Bitcoin and other major altcoins in the day. BTC is only up by some 1% in the day, while Ethereum (ETH) climbed 2%, and SOL is down 0.3%, while XRP and BNB are both up 2.4%.

Cardano has had its fair share of critics, especially among Bitcoin maximalists, but it remains to be seen whether the altcoin will continue to rise amid positive signals for an ADA ETF.