Canary Capital has taken the pioneering step of becoming the first asset manager to submit a proposal for an exchange-traded fund that integrates both cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens.
In a filing dated March 20, Canary Capital unveiled plans for an ETF that will track the Pudgy Penguins ecosystem. This fund intends to combine investment in the project’s governance token, PENGU (PENGU), with a selection of its NFTs. If sanctioned, it would also mark the first ETF in the U.S. to hold NFTs directly.
The document specifies that the trust will include spot PENGU as well as Pudgy Penguins NFTs, and will allow for holding additional digital assets like SOL (SOL) and ETH (ETH) “as needed or incidental” for transactions involving the fund’s key assets.
This approach aims to simplify operational tasks such as buying, selling, or transferring assets within the trust.
Pudgy Penguins has emerged as a prominent NFT collection in the digital space, celebrated for its whimsical artwork and vibrant community engagement. PENGU was introduced in December as the ecosystem’s governance token, established to provide holders with a voice in the project’s trajectory.
Since its inception, PENGU has debuted on platforms such as Robinhood; however, its price has not maintained momentum, currently down over 90% from its peak in December. The announcement of the ETF filing briefly boosted prices, although the uptick dissipated within an hour.
Additionally, this filing marks yet another entry in Canary’s expanding portfolio of crypto ETF submissions. Just days prior, the firm filed for a spot ETF linked to Sui, the native token of the Sui layer-1 network.
Last month, its Litecoin ETF was officially listed on the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation under the ticker LTCC.
The frequency of ETF applications has surged recently, particularly following the SEC’s evolving stance during President Trump’s new term.
Numerous altcoin ETF proposals have arrived at the regulator’s desk in recent weeks, encompassing serious layer-one contenders such as Solana (SOL) to more speculative choices including Dogecoin and even Official Trump (TRUMP).