Ben Strack

Ah, Vanguard finally caves. Now allows the trading of third-party crypto ETFs/mutual funds via its brokerage accounts. Still no plans to offer its own crypto funds.

Truly delighted and grateful for those who took a moment these last couple days to share kind words about the Blockworks news team and our work. More importantly, the support people are vocalizing for journalism more broadly is encouraging. Thanks all 🙏.

Sad to report that I was impacted by Blockworks’s decision to shut down its news division. I joined the team as a founding reporter in 2021 & I’m proud of what we accomplished over the past few years. Media is an undeniably challenging business, but journalism is indispensable, especially when it comes to an emerging industry like crypto. I’m hoping to continue to work in this space, my DMs are open for any leads on new opportunities.

Was a great pleasure, sir. We can all say the same for you

You may have heard about Blockworks shutting down its newsroom. I was among those affected. I’m really proud of what my colleagues and I built: a newsroom that cared deeply about high-quality journalism (and each other) as we navigated a fast-paced, complex space. I also loved writing the Forward Guidance newsletter and appreciate those who took the time to read it. Saddened to see it end this way, but it was a cool 4+ years. Looking forward to what’s next; open to opportunities. I have a feeling you’ll hear plenty more from the talented members of this team soon, within crypto or otherwise.

For certain institutions/advisers, solana will be a bet on stablecoin and tokenization growth, @bitwise CIO @Matt_Hougan told me. "Adjusted for size, I think it may be the most successful ETP launch of all time,” he added.

Bitwise's US SOL ETP is live. Chatting with @Matt_Hougan for today's @ForwardGuidance newsletter. 3pm drop.

Full story: blockworks.co/news/bitwise-s…

BREAKING: More US crypto ETFs are set to go live tomorrow. Bitwise plans to launch its Solana Staking ETF on the NYSE Arca. Canary Capital set to debut HBAR and LTC products on the Nasdaq.

And there we have it. US bitcoin ETF launch: Jan. 2024 US ether ETF launch: July 2024 US SOL ETF launch: Oct. 2025

Proposed Canary Capital ETFs that hold hedera (HBAR) and litecoin (LTC) “went effective” Monday, Canary CEO Steven McClurg told me in an email. The plan is for those to begin trading on the Nasdaq tomorrow morning, he added.

Fed rate decision, possible ETF launches, Coinbase earnings. And will BTC finish a seventh straight October in the green?

Letter from NYSE seems to signal the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF is ready to go live. No launch date mentioned. Bitwise declining to comment for now.

On FalconX acquiring 21Shares, CEO Raghu Yarlagadda told me both firms can collaborate on "more sophisticated vehicles with non-linear structured payouts — such as overwrite and covered-call strategies." He added that FalconX is "preparing to be IPO-ready."

But this T. Rowe Price Active Crypto ETF proposal shows another level of conviction in the space. Or at least the financial giant realizes the investor demand for such a product.

And Rizzo had called stablecoins “the most obvious use case for crypto” ... blockworks.co/news/stablecoi…

Wow, T. Rowe (~$1.8 trillion AUM) with a crypto ETF filing. Seeks to outperform the FTSE Crypto US Listed Index, which comprises the top 10 crypto assets by market cap that are eligible under the SEC's generic listing standards.