Bitcoin
Ether ETFs Look Set to Launch on Tuesday, 6 Months After Bitcoin Funds Debut
The regulator did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment on Monday. rule changes approved for exchanges to list ether funds in May.
Some of the companies that have been competing to launch ether funds include major asset managers like BlackRock, Fidelity and VanEck. Crypto-focused firms like Bitwise, 21Shares and Grayscale — which is effectively converting its multibillion-dollar Ethereum Trust into two ETFs with different fee tiers — are also jumping in.
Ether ETFs emerge about six months after the launch of bitcoin ETFswhich saw some of the most successful debuts in the history of the industry. Combined, the funds attracted more than $16 billion in net inflows, led by iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT)according to FactSet.
Ether funds are not expected to be as popular as bitcoin funds, in part because the total ether market is about a quarter the size of major cryptocurrencies.
Still, the funds are expected to be large by the standards of most ETF launches. Bitwise chief investment officer Matt Hougan predicted the funds will attract $15 billion in their first year and a half on the market, with many investors holding bitcoin and ether funds.
“If you think about an investor who doesn’t have a specific view — who just wants exposure to what blockchains can do — their starting point would be to have exposure to both bitcoin and eth,” Hougan said.
There are already some funds on the market that use ether futures contracts, but these new funds will be the first in the US to buy and hold ether on a spot basis.