Notable ETF Filings and Launches Recap: March 2025

Notable ETF filings

European issuer Leverage Shares is once again looking to enter the U.S. market, this time with a suite of eight leveraged ETFs offering 2x long and short exposure to key cryptocurrencies including bitcoin, ether, solana, and XRP.

The firm is already known in Europe for launching products that U.S. investors can’t easily access, such as the Leverage Shares 5x Long US Tech 100 ETP Securities (5QQQ.L)—a five-times leveraged bet on the Nasdaq-100.

Meanwhile, Hilton Capital has filed for the Hilton BDC Corporate Bond ETF, reflecting the growing trend of specialized bond ETFs. Just as the market has seen targeted investment-grade funds focusing on sectors like health care or energy, this filing would offer fixed income exposure to business development companies (BDCs)—a way to play the private credit theme through a bond wrapper.

On the crypto side, Grayscale, 21Shares, and other firms have already filed for spot ETFs tied to coins like Solana, XRP, and Dogecoin. Now, VanEck is trying to add Avalanche (AVAX) to the list with its own spot ETF filing. At this pace, the SEC is becoming inundated with altcoin spot ETF proposals.

VanEck is also expanding into the private markets with the VanEck Alternative Asset Managers ETF, which would hold listed firms involved in private equity, real estate, infrastructure, and private credit. It’s designed to compete with the Invesco Global Listed Private Equity ETF

and signals growing interest in packaging alternative asset exposures in public markets.

Finally, after years of licensing its RAFI indices to firms like iShares and Invesco, Research Affiliates is launching its own passive ETF tracking the RAFI Cap-Weighted U.S. Index. This move brings index construction and fund management under the same roof.

Notable ETF launches

The spot bitcoin ETF boom may have kicked off the year, but the segment is already evolving beyond simple long exposure. Later we saw the emergence of buy-write strategies, leveraged products, and now more structured approaches like the Fortuna Hedged Bitcoin Fund (HBTC).

HBTC uses an options overlay—combining a long put with a call spread—to provide downside protection. That protection doesn’t come cheap, though: the fund charges a 1.75% expense ratio, one of the highest among crypto ETFs.

In equity-linked launches, Robinhood has been in the spotlight recently, announcing major expansion plans across banking and wealth management. Defiance ETFs moved quickly to capitalize, launching the Defiance Daily Target 2X Long HOOD ETF

.

The fund provides 2x daily leveraged exposure to Robinhood stock and reflects a broader trend in single-stock ETFs: issuers are increasingly moving beyond the traditional mega-cap names and targeting more volatile, mid-cap stocks as underlying assets.

While the spot Solana ETF remains under SEC review, Solana futures are fair game—and that’s where Volatility Shares is focusing. The firm has now launched both the Volatility Shares Solana ETF

and the Volatility Shares 2x Solana ETF. Both products rely on futures and/or swaps, following the same playbook used in earlier ether and bitcoin futures ETFs.

Finally, the long-standing dominance of Simplify, KraneShares, and iMGP in the alternative ETF space is being tested. In March, both BlackRock and Invesco entered the managed futures segment.

The iShares Managed Futures Active ETF

and the Invesco Managed Futures Strategy ETF

IMF

mark the first serious attempts by large managers to break into this hedge fund-like category—an area where smaller issuers have held the lead for years.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not in any way constitute investment advice. The author may express their own opinions, which may not represent the opinions of ETF Central or its affiliated partners. It is essential that you seek advice from a registered financial professional prior to making any investment decisions.