Bitwise Asset Management has taken a preliminary legal step toward a potential Uniswap-linked exchange-traded fund (ETF) by registering a Delaware statutory trust under the name "Bitwise Uniswap ETF." The registration, filed with Delaware's Division of Corporations, establishes a legal entity that positions the firm to pursue a federal ETF filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) at a later date.
This administrative move is described by analysts as a "placeholder step that preserves optionality" and a routine procedure often undertaken months before any formal SEC submission. Vincent Liu, Chief Investment Officer at Kronos Research, emphasized to Decrypt that the registration suggests Bitwise is "positioning ahead" but does not imply an active SEC review or a defined launch timeline.
The development follows a significant regulatory shift. In February 2025, the SEC closed its investigation into Uniswap Labs, ending a probe that examined whether the protocol's activities violated U.S. securities laws. This closure was part of a broader pullback in crypto enforcement by the SEC since President Donald Trump began his second term, which has seen the agency drop at least 17 major enforcement cases against crypto firms.
Analysts note that the focus for any potential ETF approval has now shifted from legal uncertainty to practical considerations of market structure, liquidity, and custody. "While legal uncertainties have subsided, the approval process will now focus on verifying the protocol’s decentralization and actual liquidity," said Ryan Yoon, senior research analyst at Tiger Research. He added that custody, which for Uniswap relies on smart contracts, would heighten operational risk and be a central factor in the SEC's evaluation.
Other key hurdles identified include Uniswap's market integrity, manipulation risk, and the depth of on-protocol liquidity. The protocol's decentralized governance and fragmented trading volumes also present challenges for pricing and oversight. The potential activation of Uniswap's "Fee Switch"—a governance-approved mechanism to redirect a portion of trading fees to the protocol—could become a more urgent priority for value accrual to support an ETF.
Uniswap remains a dominant force in decentralized finance, with its UNI token seeing $161 million in 24-hour trading volume and the protocol processing roughly $859 million over the same period, according to CoinGecko data.
