S&P New Crypto Index Says No to Bitcoin — Protocol Revenue Did the Talking 🪙

S&P Dow Jones Indices and Pantera Capital launched the S&P Pantera Digital Asset Index, a rules-based benchmark that excludes Bitcoin ($BTC) and XRP ($XRP) because the methodology screens for protocol revenue rather than market capitalization. The index draws from the S&P Cryptocurrency Broad Digital Asset Index and retains only assets that meet minimum thresholds for protocol revenue, market capitalization and liquidity. Eligible networks are then ranked by aggregate protocol revenue over the previous two quarters and weighted by adjusted market capitalization, with the largest holding capped at 35% and the remaining constituents generally capped at 20%. Rebalancing takes place quarterly.

The benchmark launched with 18 constituents, with Ether ($ETH), BNB ($BNB), Solana ($SOL), TRON ($TRX) and Hyperliquid ($HYPE) listed as its five largest holdings. An S&P Dow Jones Indices Indexology blog post identified $BTC and $XRP as the largest non-constituents when measured against the S&P Cryptocurrency Broad Digital Asset Index, reflecting the new methodology. S&P Dow Jones Indices CEO Kathy Clay cited non-revenue generation as the key reason for the omissions. The index also excludes WhiteBIT Token, Unus Sed Leo and Rain Protocol.

The new product is positioned for institutional allocation and could serve as the underlying for investment products or as a reference for actively managed digital asset portfolios. S&P said the rules-based framework is designed to distinguish established blockchain activity from speculative exposure.

The launch follows a series of moves by index providers into digital asset benchmarks. Last October, S&P Dow Jones Indices introduced the S&P Digital Markets 50 Index, which combines 15 cryptocurrencies with 35 publicly traded companies tied to the crypto ecosystem. Hashdex launched the Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF on Feb. 14, 2025, the first multi-asset spot crypto exchange-traded fund in the United States. Franklin Templeton followed six days later with the Franklin Crypto Index ETF, a market capitalization-weighted fund tracking $BTC and $ETH through the CF Institutional Digital Asset Index. In April, MarketVector Indexes and Coinbase Asset Management launched the Coinbase Store of Value Index, which combines Bitcoin and tokenized gold using an inverse-volatility weighting model. In December, Bitwise chief investment officer Matt Hougan said "crypto index funds are going to be a big deal in 2026" as the market expands and investors seek broader exposure to digital assets.