Bitwise Asset Management has officially submitted a Form S-1 registration statement to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in order to introduce the Bitwise NEAR exchange-traded fund (ETF).

Following Bitwise's earlier move on April 24, 2025, when the company registered a trust entity for the Bitwise NEAR ETF in Delaware, this S-1 filing is the next logical step in the process.

The proposed ETF is designed to mirror the value of NEAR, the primary token of the NEAR Protocol, a layer-1 blockchain focusing on scalability and decentralized applications.

The filing did not specify the exact exchange where the ETF will be listed or its ticker symbol. Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC will act as the custodian, responsible for safeguarding the Trust’s NEAR holdings.

The Trust's objective is to provide exposure to the value of NEAR held by the Trust, minus operational expenses, and other liabilities. NEAR's price remained unaffected by the announcement, experiencing only a slight 0.8% decline in the past day, trading at $2.3 at the time of the report.

NEAR, with a market capitalization of $2.8 billion, is currently ranked as the 44th largest cryptocurrency. In Bitwise's lineup of altcoin ETF applications, NEAR now joins other major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, with pending applications for Dogecoin, Solana, XRP, and Aptos.

Despite the increasing number of applications, the approval process with the SEC remains uncertain due to recent delays in decisions on cryptocurrency ETFs, including those for XRP and DOGE, with deadlines extended to mid-June 2025. The SEC's cautious stance on crypto ETFs beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum continues, despite the more favorable regulatory environment under the Biden administration that approved spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024 and Ethereum ETFs in July 2024.