BlackRock’s Ethereum exchange-traded fund generated $15.5 million in trading volume on its first day of trading, which one market analyst described as “very, very strong” despite the two similar staking products Solana launched last year.
Nasdaq data shows that iShares Staked Ethereum Trust (ETHB) traded 592,804 shares on Thursday, and Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seiffart noted at X that the product was about $15.5 million.
“It’s very, very tough for a one-day ETF launch,” Seiffart said.
The ETF invests and contributes Ether (ETH), locking tokens on the blockchain in order to secure a yield. The fund relies on network validators to earn staking rewards, which typically offer a 4% annual yield.
ETHB’s debut trading volume of $15.5 million left behind similar staking funds tied to the Solana token (SOL), including the $55.4 million in volume recorded by the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF (BSOL) when it debuted in October. Another similar fund, the REX-Osprey SOL + Staking ETF (SSK), also recorded $33.7 million in July of this year.
ETHB adds to BlackRock’s crypto product lineup, which includes two of its flagship crypto funds, the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) and the iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA).
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Data from Farside Investors shows that the two ETFs have attracted more than $62.8 billion and $11.9 billion in inflows, respectively, since their 2024 launch.
BlackRock also wants to offer a Bitcoin Premium Income ETF, which sells call options on Bitcoin futures and collects premiums for generating yield.
According to BlackRock’s website, ETHB is backed by 80% of Ether and 20% of Ether. It started with $106.7 million in net assets held by Coinbase.
Staking rewards are distributed monthly and received from Ethereum network validators operated by Attestant owner Figment, Galaxy Digital and Bitwise.
ETHB offers a 0.25% sponsorship fee with a one-year waiver, which reduces this fee to 0.12% for the first $2.5 billion in assets under management.
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