Key Takeaways
- • Pando Finance launched Hong Kong's second spot Solana ETF (ticker 02831) on October 13, 2026, with a 0.6 percent annual management fee, but European investors cannot buy it because EU retail distribution rules exclude Hong Kong-authorised funds.
- • Estimated total running costs for the Pando fund are 1.6 percent a year, versus a 0.6 percent management fee, underscoring that the total expense ratio, not the headline fee, determines returns.
- • On Xetra, two Solana ETPs differ by a full percentage point: the 21Shares Solana Staking ETP (ASOL) charges 2.50 percent and holds about 588 million euros, while the VanEck Solana ETN (VS0L) charges 1.50 percent and holds about 76 million euros.
- • Over ten years, a 2.50 percent annual cost leaves 77.6 percent of the original SOL quantity versus 86.0 percent at 1.50 percent, a gap of about 834 euros on a 10,000-euro investment at an unchanged price.
- • Tax treatment of ETPs under Section 23 EStG is not settled; the one-year holding-period exemption may not apply if the note lacks a claim to delivery of the coins, in which case Section 20 EStG investment-income taxation is the likely outcome.
Summary
Hong Kong launched its second spot ETF on Solana on October 13, 2026, issued by Pando Finance under ticker 02831 on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, following a subscription period from October 6 to 12. It is the city's second spot Solana ETF after the ChinaAMC product and Pando's third single-cryptocurrency exchange-traded product after Bitcoin and Ethereum. The fund may hold up to 100 percent of its net asset value in SOL but uses no derivatives, no leverage and no staking. It references the CME CF Solana Dollar Reference Rate at the Asia-Pacific close, with HashKey Exchange handling trading, HashKey Custody Services handling custody and BOCI-Prudential Trustee acting as trustee.
According to the article, the 0.6 percent management fee understates the cost: Pando estimates total running costs at 1.6 percent a year, with the difference covering custody, trusteeship, audit and trading-related costs. ChinaAMC's product similarly shows a 0.99 percent management fee against an estimated 1.99 percent in total costs. The article argues that investors should compare total expense ratios, the European convention, rather than management fees.
The Hong Kong fund cannot be distributed to retail investors in the European Union, and German brokers do not carry it. US spot Solana ETFs are similarly unavailable to European retail investors. The European route is exchange-traded notes (ETPs or ETNs), which are collateralised bearer notes backed by physical coins held at a custodian.
On Xetra, the 21Shares Solana Staking ETP (ISIN CH1114873776, ticker ASOL) charges 2.50 percent a year and holds around 588 million euros, while the VanEck Solana ETN (ISIN DE000A3GSUD3, ticker VS0L) charges 1.50 percent and holds around 76 million euros. The article notes that ASOL's staking can offset part of its higher fee by passing network rewards to investors, so the net result must be read from each factsheet. 21Shares also offers a Core Staking ETP (ISIN CH1385084384), which at launch quoted a total expense ratio of 0.35 percent; the article advises checking the current rate because comparison sites have carried differing figures.
On a physically backed product, fees are taken from the deposited holdings, so each share represents fewer coins over time. The article calculates that 77.6 percent of the original coin quantity remains after ten years at 2.50 percent, versus 86.0 percent at 1.50 percent, assuming an unchanged price and excluding staking rewards.
Tax treatment is a central consideration. Holding SOL directly brings in Section 23 EStG, where gains after more than one year are tax-free and an exemption limit of 1,000 euros applies within the year, per a German Federal Ministry of Finance circular dated March 6, 2025. For ETPs, the article says the one-year treatment depends on whether the note carries a claim to delivery of the actual coins; without that claim, Section 20 EStG taxation at 25 percent withholding tax plus solidarity surcharge is the likely outcome. The article states that a definitive ruling covering all product variants is still missing. Staking rewards on direct holdings are taxed as other income under Section 22 No. 3 EStG, with a separate 256-euro exemption limit.
The launch comes as US spot Solana ETFs recorded net outflows of 24.8 million dollars in the week of October 5 to 9, their first negative week after 14 weeks of inflows, with Bitwise's BSOL accounting for about 21 million dollars. Outflows continued with a further 0.7 million dollars on October 12. Over the same period, US spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs saw around 1.22 billion dollars leave. At midday on the reporting Wednesday, SOL traded at about 106.62 dollars (95.24 euros), per CoinGecko, 63.6 percent below its record of 293.31 dollars. The article characterises the outflows as a broad retreat from crypto funds rather than a Solana-specific problem.
The article's assessment is that the cost structure of the wrapper, rather than the spot price, is the more meaningful issue, and it explicitly makes no buy or sell recommendation.
According to the article, the 0.6 percent management fee understates the cost: Pando estimates total running costs at 1.6 percent a year, with the difference covering custody, trusteeship, audit and trading-related costs. ChinaAMC's product similarly shows a 0.99 percent management fee against an estimated 1.99 percent in total costs. The article argues that investors should compare total expense ratios, the European convention, rather than management fees.
The Hong Kong fund cannot be distributed to retail investors in the European Union, and German brokers do not carry it. US spot Solana ETFs are similarly unavailable to European retail investors. The European route is exchange-traded notes (ETPs or ETNs), which are collateralised bearer notes backed by physical coins held at a custodian.
On Xetra, the 21Shares Solana Staking ETP (ISIN CH1114873776, ticker ASOL) charges 2.50 percent a year and holds around 588 million euros, while the VanEck Solana ETN (ISIN DE000A3GSUD3, ticker VS0L) charges 1.50 percent and holds around 76 million euros. The article notes that ASOL's staking can offset part of its higher fee by passing network rewards to investors, so the net result must be read from each factsheet. 21Shares also offers a Core Staking ETP (ISIN CH1385084384), which at launch quoted a total expense ratio of 0.35 percent; the article advises checking the current rate because comparison sites have carried differing figures.
On a physically backed product, fees are taken from the deposited holdings, so each share represents fewer coins over time. The article calculates that 77.6 percent of the original coin quantity remains after ten years at 2.50 percent, versus 86.0 percent at 1.50 percent, assuming an unchanged price and excluding staking rewards.
Tax treatment is a central consideration. Holding SOL directly brings in Section 23 EStG, where gains after more than one year are tax-free and an exemption limit of 1,000 euros applies within the year, per a German Federal Ministry of Finance circular dated March 6, 2025. For ETPs, the article says the one-year treatment depends on whether the note carries a claim to delivery of the actual coins; without that claim, Section 20 EStG taxation at 25 percent withholding tax plus solidarity surcharge is the likely outcome. The article states that a definitive ruling covering all product variants is still missing. Staking rewards on direct holdings are taxed as other income under Section 22 No. 3 EStG, with a separate 256-euro exemption limit.
The launch comes as US spot Solana ETFs recorded net outflows of 24.8 million dollars in the week of October 5 to 9, their first negative week after 14 weeks of inflows, with Bitwise's BSOL accounting for about 21 million dollars. Outflows continued with a further 0.7 million dollars on October 12. Over the same period, US spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs saw around 1.22 billion dollars leave. At midday on the reporting Wednesday, SOL traded at about 106.62 dollars (95.24 euros), per CoinGecko, 63.6 percent below its record of 293.31 dollars. The article characterises the outflows as a broad retreat from crypto funds rather than a Solana-specific problem.
The article's assessment is that the cost structure of the wrapper, rather than the spot price, is the more meaningful issue, and it explicitly makes no buy or sell recommendation.
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