Bitwise Asset Management has filed a preliminary S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission seeking approval for the Bitwise Chainlink ETF, a spot product designed to track the market price of LINK, the native token of the Chainlink oracle network.
According to the filing, the trust aims for its shares to directly mirror LINK’s value. Coinbase Custody Trust Company is slated to act as custodian, while Coinbase, Inc. will serve as the prime execution agent. The sponsor expects the ETF to trade on a U.S. national exchange, though the specific venue has not yet been named.
The document outlines creation and redemption mechanics typical of crypto trust products, with the option to process both in-kind and cash transactions through a “Trust-Directed Trade” framework managed by Coinbase.
Chainlink operates as a decentralized oracle network, providing off-chain data such as pricing and weather information to smart contracts, enabling interoperability across DeFi ecosystems. The LINK token powers node incentives and governance within its proof-of-stake design.
Notably, the filing makes no mention of staking or validator participation. This choice comes despite recent SEC clarification that staking does not automatically breach securities law, suggesting Bitwise intends the ETF to be a pure spot price tracker rather than a yield-generating instrument.
The proposal is part of a broader wave of filings seeking to expand single-asset crypto products beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum. Grayscale just moved to convert its Avalanche Trust into a spot AVAX ETF, while other firms explore Solana and XRP offerings.
The LINK ETF filing also follows Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan’s July outlook, which placed Chainlink among the “cleanest” crypto investment plays given its central role in the tokenization and oracle narrative. LINK is currently trading at around $23, more than 55% below its 2021 peak above $52.
