Spot $DOT ETF wakes up after month of inactivity

The sole spot @Polkadot exchange-traded fund recorded $728,000 in net inflows on Monday, October 12, ending more than a month in which it saw no investor activity. The move came only days after the network launched its own native stablecoin, dotUSD.

A thinly traded fund gets its first inflow in weeks

The 21Shares Polkadot Staking ETF (TDOT) is the fund in question. TDOT is an exchange-traded fund listed on Nasdaq that gives investors spot exposure to Polkadot (DOT) without needing a crypto wallet or exchange account. It launched on Nasdaq in March 2026. Initial first-day inflows were around $545,000.

Demand has been limited since then. CoinMarketCap's news summary noted on October 9 that the ETF had recorded only five active days since its March launch. The same summary put the fund's holdings at just 0.54% of DOT's circulating supply. Against that backdrop, Monday's $728,000 is a notable change, though small in absolute terms.

The fund's size is also modest. According to its annual filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, net assets fell from $28.1 million in April 2025 to $9.9 million on March 31, 2026 , driven mainly by a 68.82% drop in the price of DOT over the period. The trust also stakes most of its holdings: 92.40% of its DOT was staked as of March 31, 2026.

dotUSD launch precedes the inflows

The inflows followed the October 8 launch of dotUSD on Polkadot. Polkadot launched dotUSD on mainnet, giving the network a native stablecoin governed through its on-chain OpenGov system. The proposal, OpenGov Referendum 1944, passed with 98.4% approval, according to Polkassembly's referendum records.

The stablecoin is being rolled out in stages. It starts with USDT-backed issuance in Phase 1 before transitioning to a DOT-collateralised model. That design has drawn some debate, as it relies on Tether's USDT for backing rather than native DOT collateral as initially outlined.

The market reaction has been mixed. Startup Fortune reported that DOT fell close to 9.5%, trading down to around $1.10, according to a report from TradersUnion. CoinMarketCap's summary later pointed to a rebound of about 10% on October 10, with DOT rising to $1.27. Whether one day of inflows marks a lasting shift in institutional interest in $DOT remains to be seen.

Sources:

• 21Shares: Polkadot Staking ETF (TDOT) product page
• SEC filing: 21Shares Polkadot ETF Form 424B3
• The Crypto Times: Polkadot launches native dotUSD stablecoin through OpenGov