Dogecoin’s (DOGE) first US spot exchange-traded fund (ETF), listed under the ticker DOJE, made a striking debut. The fund attracted $17 million in trading volume on its first day, surpassing market expectations.
The debut highlights growing investor appetite for meme coin exposure through regulated products.
DOJE ETF Breaks Into Year’s Top Launches
The fund was launched by REX Shares and Osprey Funds and is listed on the Cboe BZX exchange. DOJE tracksthe eighth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization but employs a distinctive structure. Rather than holding DOGE directly, it gains exposure through a Cayman Islands-based subsidiary that utilizes futures and derivatives.
Notably, the ETF’s strong start was evident from the outset.Within the first hour, it recorded nearly $6 million in volume, far surpassing the typical under-$1 million benchmark for new ETF debuts.
Furthermore, Bloomberg’s senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas had set a conservative over/under at $2.5 million for the full day. He cited DOJE’s status as a 1940 Act product, which often garners less initial traction than 1933 Act counterparts.
“Setting the over/under on DOJE volume on Day One at $2.5 million (which is respectable table but nothing too special). The fact that’s it 40 Act and not 33 Act (and is not big boy issuer) could diminish interest a bit relative to other crypto first evers. We’ll soon find out,” Balchunas wrote.
Nonetheless, the result shattered that forecast. The analyst highlighted that DOJE’s trading volume reached $17 million.
“DOJE is no slouch at $17 million, which would be Top 5 for year.. out of 710 launches,” he noted.
Balchunas suggested that this bodes well for a wave of upcoming crypto-related ETFs under the 33 Act regulation. He previously forecasted that several 33 Act Dogecoin ETFs could secure SEC approval within two months, potentially accelerating inflows.
In addition, DOJE’s companion launch, the XRP ETF under ticker XRPR, amplified the day’s momentum, posting $37.7 million in volume. Combined, the pair amassed $54.7 million, highlighting a surge in altcoin ETF viability.
Dogecoin Dips After ETF Debut
Meanwhile, Dogecoin’s underlying price told a more tempered story. BeInCrypto Markets data showed that the meme coin dipped 0.81% over the past 24 hours. At the time of writing, it was trading around $0.27.
Despite this, on-chain metrics painted an optimistic picture. Alphractal, an analytics platform, pointed to a key signal in holder behavior.
According to their analysis, short-term holders have begun accumulating Dogecoin. Furthermore, long-term holders are distributing their coins.
“Historically, when STHs accumulated more Dogecoin, we witnessed a strong bull market. Could we be close to a major price surge for Doge?” Alphractal posted.
Moreover, another analyst added that following the ETF launch, a significant wave of institutional capital could soon enter the meme coin sector. The analyst went on to set a bold price target, predicting that DOGE could reach $5 amid the Dogecoin ETF launch.
Whether such targets are realistic remains uncertain, but the DOJE launch underscored one point clearly: investor appetite for meme coin ETFs is no longer confined to internet hype — it has reached regulated markets in force.
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