Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF Issuer Grayscale Debuts a New Dogecoin Trust

Asset manager Grayscale launched a Dogecoin Trust early Friday morning, offering institutional and accredited investors the opportunity to allocate to crypto’s original meme coin.

Known for its spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, which also began as private placements, Grayscale believes the $49.7 billion meme coin is no longer a laughing matter.

The firm believes that Dogecoin has morphed over the years from a simple meme coin to a “tool for global financial inclusion, grassroots activism, and a viable means of payment,” according to a press release.

With a now seemingly crypto-friendly Securities and Exchange Commission under President Donald Trump, asset managers have filed a flurry of applications for spot ETFs covering several cryptocurrencies, including Dogecoin, Litecoin and XRP. Grayscale’s announcement Friday doesn’t represent such a move, but it does reflect how institutions are adapting to a new regulatory environment.

“We believe, as a faster, cheaper, and more scalable derivative of Bitcoin, Dogecoin is helping groups underserved by legacy financial infrastructure to participate in the financial system,” Rayhaneh Sharif-Askary, Grayscale’s Head of Product Research, said in a statement.

A year ago, the prospect of a Dogecoin ETF may have seemed far-fetched. But on Tuesday, the asset manager Bitwise threw its hat into the ring, filing for a Dogecoin ETF that could broaden access among investors to tech CEO Elon Musk’s favorite cryptocurrency.

Dogecoin traded hands at $0.33 Friday, edging down 1% over the past day. The coin’s price dipped earlier this week as concerns from China’s DeepSeek rattled tech markets, and the asset took a hit last week after its logo was removed from the Department of Government Efficiency’s website.

While Grayscale’s Dogecoin Trust will be backed solely by Dogecoin, the canine crypto is already classified as the largest asset in the firm’s Consumer and Culture Crypto Sector. That sector also includes Shiba Inu (SHIB) and The Sandbox (SAND).

The announcement isn’t a total surprise. Grayscale hinted in an October blog post that Dogecoin was among several assets “under consideration” for inclusion in future products. While Grayscale’s move pushes Dogecoin into new territory, Sharif-Askary told Decrypt in November that the asset is somewhat timeless.

“Memes have existed since time immemorial,” she said. “While it was once easy to dismiss meme coins due to their playful nature, it would be irresponsible to ignore DOGE’s usage on-chain and the very real use case that is being fulfilled.”

Edited by Stacy Elliott.