Bitwise CEO talks about the closure of Dogecoin ETF and Solana demand

Bitwise closes Dogcoin ETF: Demand shift and strategic adjustment

Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley said that the decision to close the company's Dogcoin ETF sends a clear signal that investors 'focus of demand has shifted. He pointed out that Solana's on-chain application scenarios are more attractive to buyers, while Bitwise is expanding its product portfolio by launching exchange-traded funds (ETFs) centered on artificial intelligence (AI).

Bitwise terminates issuance of Dogecoin ETF

Bitwise decided to stop operating its Dogecoin ETF. Horsley defines the move as not a failure, but an evidence of how institutional buyers and retail investors allocate interest in funds. According to Horsley, buyers who once hoped to gain exposure to Dogecoin through packaged products are now increasingly leaning towards assets with active on-chain ecosystems rather than just speculative value.

Currently, the dogcoin ETF field is facing competitive pressure from various aspects. Nasdaq has separately applied for approval to list the Dogecoin ETF issued by 21Shares. This shows that Bitwise's exit does not reflect the collapse of overall market interest, but Bitwise's specific judgment on the best direction for allocating its product development resources.

Solana's on-chain application becomes alternative investment logic

The core of Horsley's rationale is to distinguish between "holding tokens to gain price exposure" and "accessing a network where activity continues to accumulate." Solana hosts a large number of decentralized finance (DeFi) activities, token issuance and application use, which belongs to the latter. In Horsley's view, buyers are choosing the latter as an investment target.

In practice, Bitwise has laid out around this logic. The company is promoting a Solana Pledged ETF structure that combines tokenization, a product designed to capture on-chain gains rather than just tracking spot price fluctuations. This is in sharp contrast to the Dogecoin ETF, which only provides price exposure to networks with little programmable activity. Solana's total lockup value (TVL) on the chain and depth of agreements provide substantial background support for this demand argument.

This framework also conforms to Bitwise's model for other Layer-1 networks. The company has registered products in multiple blockchain ecosystems, such as filing a NEAR ETF application with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) by registering in Delaware, demonstrating its intention to focus on networks with an active developer and user base, rather than Meme-driven assets.

AI ETF expands Bitwise's product strategy beyond cryptocurrencies

While shutting down the Dogecoin ETF, Bitwise is expanding its product lineup to AI-focused ETFs. Horsley views these two initiatives-streamlining crypto products and expanding the AI space-as part of the same strategic logic: allocating product capacity to areas where buyer demand is clearly active.

The new AI ETF reflects the broader integration between digital asset management companies and themed investments in the technology sector. For Bitwise, which has built its reputation primarily as a crypto asset management company, entering the AI product space marks a significant expansion in the scope of its mission. Horsley has described the shift in institutional demand as the withdrawal of sovereign wealth funds from traditional stores of value, a framework that is consistent with thematic exposures that position AI and crypto assets as complementary.

From a bitcoin-first perspective, Bitwise's product transformation highlights a structural view: Capital seeking productive network exposure, whether it is on-chain gains on Solana or growth in AI infrastructure, is applying a utility test that purely speculative assets such as Dogcoin fail. Bitcoin itself occupies a unique category, valued for its monetary attributes and network security, rather than application throughput;Solana's positioning as a highly active execution layer is in a different demand segment than Bitcoin's fixed-supply currency theory.