XRP Added to Nasdaq Crypto Index, Paving Way for ETF Inclusion

• XRP added to Nasdaq Crypto Index, joining ADA, SOL, and XLM in a major institutional shift.
• ETFs cannot yet hold XRP due to SEC restrictions, increasing the risk of performance divergence.
• SEC ruling expected by Nov. 2025 could allow broader asset inclusion in crypto ETFs.

In a landmark development for Ripple’s XRP, the digital asset has been officially added to the Nasdaq Crypto US Settlement Price Index (NCIUS), effective June 2, 2025. This move expands the index beyond its original Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) components to now include XRP, Cardano (ADA), Solana (SOL), and Stellar Lumens (XLM), signaling growing institutional recognition for these altcoins.

The announcement was disclosed in a June 6 SEC filing by the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF (NCIQ). This ETF, though still limited to holding BTC and ETH due to existing SEC regulations, uses the Nasdaq index as a benchmark for performance. Adding XRP and some others to the index marks a substantial shift in Nasdaq’s approach to tracking a broader investment market via a rules-based, market-cap-weighted methodology.

ETF Performance Divergence Concerns

While the index expansion is a fundamental development, the ETF’s incapacity to hold newly added assets like XRP presents a source of tracking error.

The ETF’s holdings now diverge from its benchmark, which may impact performance correlation.

“Under current regulatory restrictions, the Trust is only permitted to hold Bitcoin and Ether,” the filing noted. “It is not permitted to hold the new index constituents… creating the risk of potential tracking error.”

This divergence spotlights a key issue facing crypto ETFs: regulatory approval. Until the SEC allows funds to hold a broader mix of crypto assets, ETFs may struggle to fully reflect the evolving market indexes they track.

Nasdaq’s Broader Crypto Strategy

Nasdaq has also proposed a separate rule change to the SEC, dated March 7, 2025, that would allow the Hashdex ETF to shift from the NCIUS to the more comprehensive Nasdaq Crypto Index (NCI) as its benchmark. This broader index includes LINK, LTC, and UNI, alongside the assets added this week.

XRP was first added to the NCI on June 3, 2024, but only now has it been formally recognized within the NCIUS framework. A final ruling on Nasdaq’s proposed index change is expected by November 2, 2025, which could grant the ETF permission to hold all index constituents, including XRP, directly.

With the addition of XRP to a Nasdaq index, the asset received confirmation of its increased visibility in institutional finance. Following many ETF-related developments in the crypto space, some analysts maintain that these inclusions could eventually lead to ETFs, should the regulatory environment change.

For now, XRP’s inclusion serves as a symbolic milestone for its long-term legitimacy, although it is not yet directly held in the ETF.

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