Injective co-founder and chief executive Eric Chen expects U.S. exchange-traded funds linked to the network’s INJ token to reach the market before 2027, placing two pending fund applications at the center of the blockchain’s effort to connect its tokenization-focused infrastructure with regulated financial channels.
Chen made the forecast during Korea Blockchain Week 2026, where he pointed to filings for the 21Shares Injective ETF and the Canary Staked INJ ETF. Both products were first submitted in 2025, and their issuers filed amended S-1 registration statements with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in September, according to the regulator’s public database.
The amended registration statements show that the proposed products remain active, though an S-1 filing does not by itself authorize a fund to begin trading. The SEC process can require further amendments, reviews and approvals before an ETF reaches a U.S. exchange. Chen’s timeline therefore reflects the company’s expectation rather than a published regulatory decision.
Two proposed products take different staking approaches
The two applications would give traditional brokerage customers potential exposure to INJ through ETF shares rather than direct token custody. That structure could lower the operational barriers for institutions that are restricted from holding or managing cryptoassets directly, while leaving the fund sponsor responsible for custody, administration and other operational functions.
Public filings show that staking is a major point of difference between the proposals. One planned fund would allocate at least 90% of its holdings to staking, seeking to generate yield from participating in Injective’s proof-of-stake network. The other proposal targets a 40% to 60% allocation.
Staking involves committing tokens to validators that help secure a blockchain and process transactions. In return, token holders may receive network rewards, although returns can vary and staked assets can face operational restrictions, including unbonding periods before they can be transferred or sold.
The allocation gap means the proposed ETFs would offer materially different exposure even if both track INJ. A portfolio with a higher staking allocation could seek more reward income but may have less immediately liquid token inventory available for creations, redemptions or other fund operations. A lower target gives a manager more flexibility but may capture less staking yield.
INJ’s market capitalization stood just above $1.4 billion, while the token traded roughly between $7 and $8 across major platforms following the latest network upgrade, according to the figures supplied in the source material. At that scale, an approved U.S. ETF would enter a market far smaller than the established Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF categories, making fund design and liquidity management particularly relevant.
Regulatory services expand in the United States
The ETF filings arrive as Injective builds a more formal regulatory presence in the United States. Injective Institutional Services became an SEC-registered transfer agent in August, Chen said.
Transfer agents maintain ownership records for securities and perform administrative functions connected to issuers and security holders. The registration gives Injective Institutional Services a role associated with conventional securities infrastructure, though it does not confer ETF approval or authorize the company to offer securities products without meeting other applicable requirements.
The move fits with Injective’s focus on tokenization: putting representations of financial or real-world assets on a blockchain so ownership, transfers and settlement rules can be managed through digital systems. Transfer-agent registration could support projects seeking to connect tokenized instruments with recordkeeping practices familiar to regulated issuers.
Meridian adds compliance-oriented controls
Injective deployed its Meridian upgrade on Sept. 24 after validators approved the proposal with a 99% positive vote, according to the network’s governance results. The upgrade introduced transfer controls designed to support compliance requirements for tokenized assets.
Those controls could allow issuers or applications to set rules governing who may receive or hold certain tokens. Such features are often needed for regulated asset offerings, where issuers may need to account for jurisdictional restrictions, eligibility requirements, sanctions screening or transfer limits.
Chen described Meridian as infrastructure for onchain tokenization, offerings and collateralization. The approach places compliance logic closer to the asset itself, rather than relying entirely on restrictions imposed by a trading venue or intermediary.
That design addresses a practical obstacle facing tokenized private-market products. Private shares, credit instruments and other restricted assets often cannot trade freely in the same way as a public cryptocurrency. A blockchain system that can enforce transfer conditions may make it easier to represent those assets digitally without removing the controls attached to them.
Europe strategy focuses on MiCA access
Injective is also pursuing access to European markets under the Markets in Crypto-Assets framework. Chen said a MiCA white paper for INJ had been submitted and finalized.
In July, Injective said it completed the notification and publication process for the document and had been added to the European Securities and Markets Authority’s interim register. The process is a disclosure step connected with seeking admission to trading in the European Union under MiCA.
Chen said Injective is working with companies that already hold European licenses, including on payments and tokenization initiatives linked to the framework. Partnering with licensed firms may give the network a more direct route into regulated services than attempting to build every local compliance function itself.
Private markets are the tokenization target
Chen’s comments on real-world assets focused on private-market finance, where transactions can involve long preparation periods, multiple intermediaries and fragmented ownership structures. He argued that onchain systems could compress parts of that process into “one or two small contracts,” reducing the need for layers of bundling, pitching, tranche sales and subdivisions.
The claim reflects a common promise of tokenization, but the gains depend on whether legal agreements, identity controls, custody arrangements and investor eligibility requirements can be coordinated with the blockchain layer. Meridian’s transfer controls and the company’s transfer-agent registration are aimed at those operational constraints rather than the simpler task of issuing a freely tradable token.
Injective’s strategy now depends on parallel outcomes: the SEC’s handling of the two INJ ETF applications, the ability of its compliance features to attract asset issuers, and execution with licensed European partners. Chen’s pre-2027 ETF prediction gives the regulatory timetable a clear public benchmark, while the network’s institutional infrastructure suggests Injective is preparing for tokenized products that require more than token liquidity alone.
Explore how tokenized assets meet traditional markets in our guide to ETFs and how they work today.
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