TL;DR

Grayscale registered two trusts in Delaware for BNB and HYPE ETFs, a preliminary step before submitting an S-1 filing to the SEC.
The BNB and HYPE trusts were registered under CSC Delaware Trust Company, initiating the regulatory path toward federal approval.
A HYPE ETF would break Grayscale’s track record by including an asset that is barely one year old.

Grayscale took the first formal step toward launching ETFs linked to BNB and Hyperliquid (HYPE) after registering two statutory trusts in Delaware on January 8, 2026. The asset manager, which oversees approximately $35,000 million, completed this filing as a precursor to submitting formal applications to the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

The registrations correspond to the Grayscale BNB Trust, filed under number 10465871, and the Grayscale HYPE Trust, registered as 10465863. Both were filed under CSC Delaware Trust Company. This procedure does not guarantee approval, but it typically marks the beginning of the regulatory process ahead of a federal filing through the S-1 form.

Grayscale’s next step would be the submission of the S-1, which outlines the ETF’s structure, investment strategy, risk factors, and regulatory requirements. The SEC’s approval of generic listing standards for crypto ETFs removed the need for asset-specific changes under Section 19(b), accelerating the launch process for products that meet the basic criteria.

Grayscale Enters the Fierce ETF Market Competition

Grayscale is moving directly into competition with other asset managers. VanEck, a firm with $181,400 million under management, registered a trust for a spot BNB ETF in April and submitted its S-1 in May. The company also confirmed plans to launch an ETF linked to HYPE. Bitwise recently amended its filing for a similar Hyperliquid product, and industry analysts consider it one of the closest candidates to reach the market. Meanwhile, 21Shares took a more aggressive approach by filing a leveraged product that tracks twice the daily performance of the Hyperliquid index.

Hyperliquid Breaks the Manager’s Mold

A HYPE ETF could break Grayscale’s historical pattern. Analysts note that it would be the youngest asset included in its lineup, as previous products were based on tokens with between three and more than ten years of track record. Hyperliquid is roughly one year old and already operates as the largest perpetual futures DEX. During periods of high volatility, the protocol processed billions of dollars in liquidations without experiencing outages, unlike several centralized exchanges.

In the market, BNB trades around $892, with a daily gain of 0.84%, while HYPE stands near $25.92, down 2.50% on the day.

With nine crypto ETFs already live and additional applications underway for other assets, Grayscale continues to expand its offering while taking full advantage of the increasingly open regulatory environment

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Filed under: News - @ January 9, 2026 1:22 pm