Galaxy Research has mapped out a concrete “express lane” for US crypto ETFs beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum—and, on its scorecard, XRP holds the cleanest path along Solana if the Securities and Exchange Commission adopts the newly proposed fast-track framework.
XRP, SOL Or DOGE: Who Leads The ETF Fast-Track?
The analysis hinges on a trio of listing tests advanced by Cboe BZX, Nasdaq and NYSE Arca in coordinated 19b-4 filings on July 30, which aim to replace today’s case-by-case approvals with standardized eligibility. Public comment periods closed on August 25; the initial SEC decision date is September 13, with a maximum outside date of March 27, 2026. “This… would substantially alleviate a major burden for an agency facing an overwhelming and ever-growing number of crypto ETP applications,” Galaxy writes, adding that it expects a decision “sooner than the latest possible deadline.”
The proposed fast-track hinges on three objective conditions, any one of which would qualify a token’s ETF for expedited review: trading on a market that’s an Intermarket Surveillance Group (ISG) member; underpinning a futures contract that has traded on a designated contract market (DCM) for at least six months with surveillance-sharing; or, on an initial basis, having “an exchange-traded fund designed to provide economic exposure of no less than 40% of its net asset value” to the underlying asset listed on a national securities exchange. Galaxy underscores that the first prong (ISG for spot) currently captures only BTC and ETH, so near-term candidates will be sorted mainly by the regulated-futures and ≥40%-ETF-exposure prongs.
On that framework, Solana and Dogecoin already clear Condition 2 today, Galaxy says, because each has been listed for more than six months on Coinbase Derivatives—a CFTC-regulated DCM with surveillance agreements—while XRP “will… reach [its] six-month seasoning” in October.
In Galaxy’s words: “In total, 10 tokens meet the criteria for expedited listing: DOGE, BCH, LTC, LINK, XLM, AVAX, SHIB, DOT, SOL, and HBAR. Additionally, ADA and XRP will soon qualify because they will have been trading on a designated contract market (DCM) for six months after their initial listing date.” That timing distinction, by itself, places SOL and DOGE a step ahead of XRP on the futures-seasoning test.
Crucially, Galaxy also argues that Solana and XRP may satisfy the third prong as well: “XRP and SOL may also qualify because they both have exchange-traded funds listed on a national exchange that provide ‘no less than 40% of their NAV’ to the underlying token. These are technically futures ETFs that track XRP and SOL contracts.” If the SEC accepts that interpretation, Solana would qualify under two independent routes (regulated-futures seasoning plus ≥40% ETF exposure), while Dogecoin would rely on the futures route alone and XRP would unlock both routes once its six-month DCM window matures. That dual-qualifier status is the core of Galaxy’s implicit pecking order.
Issuers’ positioning reinforces the triage. In late June, Invesco and Galaxy formally entered the US race for a spot Solana ETF, giving SOL a well-resourced sponsor complex already embedded in the crypto ETP ecosystem. Meanwhile, Bloomberg’s ETF research desk has framed SOL, XRP and several others as high-probability approvals by end-2025 if a standardized regime is blessed. None of that guarantees sequencing, but it highlights that Solana pairs regulatory-criteria readiness with live filings from blue-chip issuers—an advantage that Dogecoin shares only in part and XRP will match once its DCM seasoning completes.
Solana Has A Narrow Lead
Galaxy’s bottom line is not a horse-race call so much as a rules-based shortlist. The firm notes that nine of the tokens that already qualify—or will imminently qualify—also have pending ETF applications, explicitly naming Dogecoin, Litecoin, Chainlink, Avalanche, Polkadot, Solana, Hedera, XRP and Cardano as “more likely to see ETF launches” if the rule is adopted.
But between XRP, SOL and DOGE, the only asset that checks the six-month regulated-futures box today and plausibly the ≥40%-ETF-exposure box as well is Solana, making it the “fast-track favorite” under Galaxy’s framework. As the research cautions, final outcomes still depend on how the SEC interprets the ≥40% test and whether it accepts the exchanges’ plan to bolt on additional quantitative guardrails such as minimum US trading volume and market-cap thresholds.
If the SEC moves quickly this autumn, the market could see the first non-BTC/ETH spot approvals as early as Q4, with sequencing likely to mirror today’s eligibility math. On Galaxy’s worksheet, that keeps Solana in pole position, Dogecoin close behind on the futures-seasoning lane, and XRP set to join the front row once its October clock ticks past six months.
At press time, XRP traded at $2.91.
