Injective co-founder and CEO Eric Chen said he expects US spot exchange-traded funds tied to INJ to launch before 2027, calling that timeline “a little bit too far” and adding that the process is moving faster than he anticipated. Speaking at Korea Blockchain Week 2026, Chen avoided giving a precise launch date but expressed confidence in regulatory progress.
Two INJ ETF applications remain pending with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The 21Shares Injective ETF and the Canary Staked INJ ETF were both originally filed in 2025, and both issuers submitted amended S-1 registration statements in September 2026. The 21Shares filing states that the fund’s primary objective is to track the price performance of INJ and that it plans to list on Nasdaq. Canary’s proposal includes staking exposure.
Chen also highlighted Injective’s broader institutional expansion. Injective Institutional Services became an SEC-registered transfer agent in August, which Chen described as only the beginning of the network’s US licensing plans. In addition, the network activated its Meridian upgrade on September 24 after governance approval, aiming to move tokenization, offerings and collateralization into live onchain activity with compliance-oriented transfer controls.
In Europe, Injective said its MiCA technical document for INJ was finalized in July and the token is now on the provisional register of the European Securities and Markets Authority. Chen said obtaining a license in the region is a slow process, which is why Injective is working with already licensed firms on payments and tokenization partnerships. Still, final ETF approval and launch timing remain dependent on SEC action rather than Injective’s technical readiness or Chen’s expectations.
