Why T. Rowe Price’s crypto ETF holds a memecoin

When T. Rowe Price launched the industry’s first actively managed multi-token spot crypto exchange-traded fund in July, the portfolio contained what many expected: bitcoin, ether and solana. It also held something else. Dogecoin.

The $1.9 trillion asset manager’s T. Rowe Price Active Crypto ETF (TKNZ) allocates roughly 1.26% of its assets to the memecoin, which currently ranks as the fourth-largest holding behind bitcoin (60%), ether and Binance Coin. The fund carries a 0.75% management fee under a temporary waiver through May 2027.

Blue Macellari, head of digital assets at T. Rowe Price and lead portfolio manager for TKNZ, said the decision was not about chasing internet hype. It was about constructing a complete picture of the crypto market.

“We wanted true active management,” she said. “I’m not going to stand on principle and say, ‘I’m going to be an intellectual snob,’ and if a memecoin performs, my investors aren’t going to participate.”

Macellari said the fund evaluates each eligible token on its own investment merits. The team applies three layers of analysis: blockchain technology and token economics, ecosystem growth and adoption, and market momentum. If an established memecoin shows strong momentum or improves portfolio risk-return, excluding it on reputation alone could leave investors on the sidelines, she said.

She pushed back against the view that memecoins are purely speculative. “These are established memecoins,” she said. “These are tokens that have been around for years and are among the largest crypto assets by market capitalization.”

Dogecoin, launched in 2013, has a market capitalization above $15 billion and trades on major exchanges. It has survived multiple market cycles.

Macellari also argued that memecoin trading provides a useful stress test for blockchain networks. When a chain experiences a memecoin season, she said, it must deliver near-instant settlement, low transaction costs and reliability under congestion. That testing matters as stablecoins move further into mainstream finance, she said. Networks need to handle both multi-million-dollar transfers and everyday consumer payments cost-effectively.

“It needs to be cost-effective to send $100 million in stablecoins,” Macellari said. “But it also needs to be cost-effective to send $3.”

The fund’s active approach reflects T. Rowe Price’s broader investment philosophy. Unlike many ETF issuers that track market-cap-weighted indexes, the firm believes crypto requires active security selection.

“We think good judgment and good decision making and active management probably matters more in crypto than any other asset class,” Macellari said.

T. Rowe Price waited until the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission finalized generic listing standards last year before launching TKNZ, Macellari said. Those standards gave the firm the tools to create a multi-token ETF where the eligible universe of assets can expand over time as additional cryptocurrencies meet the rules.

“Up until the SEC put out the generic listing standards, you didn’t have the tools to make a multi-token ETF where the investable universe could expand over time,” she said.

Macellari expects the crypto ETF market to become increasingly specialized. She envisions funds focused on large-cap blue-chip tokens, small-cap emerging assets, and even sector-specific products. T. Rowe Price is not trying to compete directly with passive giants like BlackRock, she said. The firm’s focus remains on delivering active management in an asset class where leadership can shift quickly.

“What we’re doing is very much our lane,” she said.

T. Rowe Price shares trade under the ticker TROW. The stock carries an Alpha Scale score of 65 out of 100 from AlphaScala, reflecting a moderate risk profile.