Author: Blockchain Knight
On November 24, Grayscale's Dogecoin ETF (GDOG) was listed on the New York Stock Exchange Arca, but it was met with a "cold reception".
On its first day, secondary market trading volume was only $1.41 million, far below the $12 million predicted by Bloomberg analysts, and net inflows were zero, meaning no new capital was injected into the ecosystem. This performance clearly reveals that market demand for regulated products has been severely overestimated.
The lukewarm reception of GDOG stands in stark contrast to successful examples from the same period. The Solana ETF (BSOL), launched in late October, attracted $200 million in inflows in its first week, primarily due to its practical attribute of collateralized returns, providing traditional investors with an investment mechanism that is difficult to access directly.
GDOG only offers social sentiment exposure. As a regular spot product, its underlying assets are already widely available on retail platforms such as Robinhood. Lacking an "access premium" and yield support, it has limited appeal to institutions.
Furthermore, the inherent characteristics of MEME introduce additional risks. Although Dogecoin boasts a daily trading volume of $1.5 billion, it is susceptible to dramatic event-driven fluctuations.
Meanwhile, creating large positions requires purchasing massive amounts of DOGE, which could drive up the spot price; and if the crypto market crashes during ETF closures, the price may deviate significantly from its net asset value upon resumption of trading. These risks lead traders to view GDOG as a short-term trading tool rather than a long-term asset allocation.
The lukewarm reception of GDOG is not an isolated incident, but rather a warning sign of oversupply in the industry. Five spot crypto ETFs (including Chainlink and XRP-related products) will be launched in the next six days, and over 100 more single-token ETFs are expected to be launched in the following six months.
However, the current market environment is extremely headwinds. As of the week ending November 24, digital asset investment products saw a net outflow of $1.94 billion.
This supply-demand mismatch harbors structural risks. If even high-profile MEME assets like Dogecoin cannot attract subscriptions, the prospects for "long-tail ETFs" of low-liquidity assets are even bleaker.
A large number of small-scale "zombie ETFs" will dilute market liquidity, increase the difficulty of market makers' inventory management, and may lead to widening spreads and increased tracking errors during periods of volatility.
GDOG's performance over the next two weeks will be a litmus test for the industry. If "zero new additions" continues, it means that the product is only eroding existing demand rather than creating new inflows, which may force issuers to slow down the pace of launching 100 ETFs, or even trigger channel consolidation.
Despite the infrastructure and regulatory approvals for crypto ETFs being in place, investors are choosing to exit in the current sluggish environment, and the previously frenzied issuance boom urgently needs to return to rationality.
