Grayscale Eyes the Orb: Worldcoin ETF Filing Lands, WLD Eyes 97% Climb Back to Reality 👁️

Grayscale filed an S-1 registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday for a spot Worldcoin ($WLD) exchange-traded fund, proposing to list the product on the Nasdaq under the ticker GWLD. The filing marks Grayscale's 18th crypto-related exchange-traded product, joining existing funds tied to Bitcoin ($BTC), Ether ($ETH), Solana ($SOL), XRP ($XRP), Dogecoin ($DOGE) and Chainlink ($LINK).

The trust was formed on July 10, with the S-1 submitted ten days later, according to the preliminary prospectus. BitGo Bank & Trust will serve as custodian for the fund's Worldcoin holdings, BNY Mellon will act as administrator and transfer agent, and CSC Delaware Trust Company will act as trustee. The filing does not yet disclose management fees, seed investment, authorized participants or liquidity providers. Grayscale also disclosed plans to offer in-kind creations and redemptions for the Fund and is seeking to list under generic listing standards that have accelerated approvals for similar products.

Worldcoin is an ERC-20 token built on the Ethereum blockchain that serves as the native token of World, a project founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman that uses biometric eye-scanning devices called Orbs to distinguish humans from bots. The token traded near $0.375, up roughly 3.3% to 4% on the day depending on the source, following news of the filing. WLD remains about 97% below its March 2024 peak of $11.74.

Grayscale's own paperwork outlines significant risks attached to the asset. Between 2024 and 2025, regulators in Spain, Portugal, Germany, Hong Kong, Brazil, Kenya and Indonesia took action against Worldcoin operations. The filing also notes that the 100 largest wallets hold approximately 90% of circulating WLD, and team and investor tokens continue to unlock until around July 2028. The proposed fund cannot begin trading until the SEC signs off and Nasdaq clears the listing.