Wall Street's biggest crypto bets are starting to look very different from just a few months ago.
After aggressively expanding into altcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in late 2025, Goldman Sachs has now sharply reversed course, exiting some of its highest-profile positions.
The shift is drawing attention across crypto markets because it suggests large banks may already be rotating away from early altcoin ETF trades and toward a new class of crypto infrastructure plays.
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Goldman Sachs exits XRP and Solana ETF positions
Goldman Sachs fully exited its XRP- and Solana-linked ETF holdings during the first quarter of 2026, according to the bank's latest Form 13F filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
The move marked a major reversal from the bank's positioning just months earlier.
At the end of Q4 2025, Goldman held nearly $154 million worth of XRP-related ETFs issued by Bitwise, Franklin Templeton, Grayscale and 21Shares, making it one of the largest institutional holders of XRP ETF products at the time.
The bank also previously disclosed exposure to several Solana investment products, including the Grayscale Solana Trust ETF, Bitwise Solana Staking ETF and Fidelity Solana Fund.
Those positions disappeared entirely from Goldman's Q1 filing.
The pullback came despite broader institutional adoption of crypto ETFs continuing into 2026, with Bitcoin ETF holdings remaining above $700 million even after Goldman trimmed some of its exposure during the quarter.
The rapid exit suggests the bank may be reevaluating its strategy around direct altcoin ETF exposure after initially embracing the sector during the late-2025 launch wave.
Goldman pivots toward Hyperliquid exposure
While Goldman exited XRP and Solana ETF products, the bank simultaneously opened a new position tied to Hyperliquid-related infrastructure .
Hyperliquid has quickly emerged as one of the fastest-growing sectors in crypto markets. Hyperliquid is a decentralized perpetual futures trading platform that allows users to trade crypto derivatives directly onchain without traditional intermediaries.
The platform processed roughly $2.9 trillion in trading volume during 2025, a more than 400% increase from the previous year, while commanding nearly 60% of global onchain derivatives open interest, according to Bitwise .
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According to filings and market reports, Goldman acquired roughly 654,630 shares of Hyperliquid Strategies Inc. (PURR), valued at approximately $3.3 million.
The move came only days after the first Hyperliquid ETFs began trading in the United States.
On May 12, 21Shares launched the first Hyperliquid ETF, followed by Bitwise's BHYP ETF debut on the New York Stock Exchange on May 15.
The rapid institutional pivot highlights growing Wall Street interest in crypto infrastructure tied to decentralized derivatives and onchain trading platforms rather than direct exposure to altcoins themselves.
Hyperliquid's native HYPE token was trading near $46 at the time of writing, up more than 7% over the past week, with a market capitalization approaching $12 billion. The token has climbed into the top 10 crypto assets by market capitalization in less than two years.
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This story was originally published by TheStreet on May 18, 2026, where it first appeared in the MARKETS section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
