This is the news the market has been waiting for: regulatory certainty leading to public trading. Cboe BZX Exchange has officially certified the 21Shares spot XRP ETF approval for listing, marking the final administrative hurdle before the product hits the market. This crucial step, confirmed in a December 10th filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), means the exchange is ready to register and list the fund as soon as the last official issuance notices are completed. Honestly, it looks like trading could begin as early as next week, assuming those final administrative boxes get ticked quickly.
The significance of this cannot be overstated. Investors now get regulated exposure to XRP’s price movements without the headache of directly holding the asset. The ETF will track the CME CF XRP-Dollar Reference Rate – New York Variant, giving institutional and retail buyers alike a clean, compliant entry point. The product is set to trade under the ticker TOXR, placing it prominently on the Cboe BZX Exchange alongside other major digital-asset financial products.
The Regulatory Road: SEC’s Procedural Nod
The formal listing approval comes just a few weeks after the SEC granted its automatic approval to 21Shares’ 8-A registration, following the submission of an amended S-1 filing. While the December 8th S-1/A filing still carries the boilerplate stamp “Subject to Completion,” industry regulators view this as a purely procedural label. They have clarified that this label poses no actual block to the exchange listing process.
Let’s be honest, in the world of crypto regulation, procedural steps often feel like the biggest roadblocks, right? But in this case, the green light from Cboe signifies that the SEC’s earlier confirmation regarding XRP not being a security in secondary sales paved a clear path forward. This clarity has fundamentally transformed the entire XRP market structure.
Key Structure and Security: A Multi-Custodian Model
Credit from Coin Pedia
The structure of the 21Shares XRP ETF shows a serious commitment to institutional-grade security. The product adopts a robust multi-custodian model, utilizing established names like Coinbase Custody, Anchorage Digital Bank, and BitGo Trust Company to manage the fund’s physical XRP reserves. This decentralization of risk is a huge selling point for institutional clients.
What about fees? The ETF carries a competitive annual sponsor fee of 0.3%. Interestingly, this fee is calculated daily but paid weekly in XRP. This structure subtly integrates the fund into the native asset’s economy. Furthermore, the fund was seeded with a substantial commitment: Ripple Markets themselves injected 100 million XRP, which translates to roughly $226 million at current prices. Shares in the fund can be created or redeemed in-kind through XRP transfers or in cash by authorized participants, offering dual flexibility.
21Shares spot XRP ETF approval and the Expanding $1 Billion Market
The Cboe listing approval adds significant fuel to a market that is already on fire. Following the positive outcome of the SEC–Ripple litigation earlier this year—which explicitly stated that secondary sales of XRP do not constitute a security—the XRP ETF ecosystem has expanded dramatically. We’re seeing growth rates that haven’t been observed since the initial surge of Ethereum ETFs.
As of the latest figures on December 11th, at least four spot XRP ETFs are already active globally. Collectively, their combined assets under management (AUM) are now approaching the $1 billion mark, with net inflows surging past $900 million since their respective inceptions just weeks ago. Analysts widely view the 21Shares product as a key addition to this cohort, primarily due to its sheer size, substantial seed capital, and its ironclad multi-custody design. It will inevitably attract more large-scale institutional money that demands stringent compliance.
This 21Shares spot XRP ETF approval is more than just a listing notice; it’s confirmation that the regulated crypto market is rapidly accepting XRP. It solidifies the asset’s position and further integrates it into traditional financial infrastructure.
