Pepe May Follow Dogecoin to Wall Street—But ETF Investors Aren't Buying Meme Hype
Canary Capital applied to launch an ETF tracking the meme coin Pepe, but the token’s price showed little reaction, signaling limited institutional interest in such assets. Meme coins previously drove growth for some firms, but skepticism persists about their credibility for institutional investors. Dogecoin ETFs are available but ranked low in popularity, with inflows far behind major coins like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP; ETFs tied to other altcoins make up just 9% of total crypto ETF assets. SEC guidance classifies most meme coins as digital collectibles, not securities, and new crypto ETFs can be listed if the underlying asset has at least six months of regulated futures trading. Pepe futures trade on Kraken, meeting some requirements. Canary has also filed for ETFs tied to other meme coins such as Mog, PENGU, and TRUMP, though approval seems uncertain due to limited futures trading. Other firms, like Tuttle Capital, have applied for leveraged meme coin ETFs, but the SEC is yet to issue decisions. Overall, only the largest cryptocurrencies attract significant institutional investor interest.
