ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood says crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) will likely maintain their place in the economy, regardless of how widespread crypto wallet adoption becomes over the next decade.
“I think ETFs are an important stepping stone because, you know, wallets seem so complicated, so much friction for consumers, they just wanna push a button,” Wood said at the Solana Accelerate event in New York on May 23.
Wallets remain an insurance policy, says Wood
“So ETFs for those who want the convenience, I don’t think, will lose a lot of their luster,” she said. “But they will be a stepping stone into wallet-based.” Wood reiterated the extra layer of protection that crypto wallets provide:
“These are insurance policies against something going wrong in the traditional world.”
Bitbo data suggests that there are around 200 million active Bitcoin (BTC) wallets worldwide. Meanwhile, the trading week ending May 23 saw approximately $2.75 billion inflows into US-based spot Bitcoin ETFs, coinciding with Bitcoin reaching a new all-time high of $111,970 on May 22.
Cathie Wood spoke to ETF analyst Eric Balchunas at Solana Accelerate on May 23. Source: Solana
Since spot Bitcoin ETFs launched in the US in January 2024, approximately $44.49 billion in inflows have been recorded, according to Farside data. Meanwhile, spot Ether (ETH) ETFs have seen approximately $2.77 billion in inflows since launching in July 2024.
Wood said that spot Ether ETFs were “less successful than people were expecting” because the US Securities and Exchange Commission did not allow staking. On May 21, the SEC delayed its decision on Bitwise’s application to add staking to its Ether exchange-traded fund.
However, Wood still views Ether as the entry point for new investors to familiarize themselves with smart contracts before exploring other cryptocurrencies, such as Solana (SOL).
“So they might start in the smart contract world with Ether, but once they study the technology, and follow the developers, and see the uptake by consumers, I think they will get there,” Wood said.
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