The First U.S. Spot ETFs to Marry Passive Exposure and On-Chain Yield
Grayscale Investments has unveiled three pioneering exchange-traded funds—the Ethereum Mini Trust
(ticker ETH), the long-standing Ethereum Trust (ETHE), and the Solana Trust (GSOL)—that will
incorporate native staking rewards once final regulatory checks clear. By allowing validators to
lock a portion of the underlying coins, the firm expects to transform what has traditionally been a
buy-and-hold vehicle into a yield-generating product, all while keeping its core objective of
tracking spot market prices intact. The launch underscores Grayscale’s scale—about $35 billion in
assets under management—and its intent to remain the first mover in U.S. crypto capital markets.
Chief executive Peter Mintzberg framed staking as “the next logical step” for investors who already
enjoy exchange-traded access to bitcoin and ether but have so far missed out on on-chain income
without self-custody. For now, ETH and ETHE will maintain direct ether exposure, whereas GSOL
delivers spot Solana holdings; the incremental staking yield will simply accrue inside each fund.
Shifting Regulation and a Cascade of Product Innovation
The arrival of staking in an ETF wrapper would have been unthinkable just two years ago, yet the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has steadily warmed to more advanced crypto structures.
After Grayscale’s court victory in 2024 forced the approval of spot bitcoin ETFs, the agency went on
to green-light spot ether funds, in-kind creations, options on digital-asset ETPs, and, most
recently, Grayscale’s multi-crypto Digital Large Cap Fund. This policy thaw has triggered a burst
of filings: covered-call strategies on bitcoin and ether, prospective Polkadot and Cardano trusts,
and even a Dogecoin fund now sit in the SEC’s queue. Market-structure specialists also credit an
NYSE proposal earlier this year—submitted on Grayscale’s behalf—for laying the groundwork that lets
validators remit staking rewards through institutional custodians without running afoul of
securities-lending rules.
How Staking Works Inside an ETF
Grayscale intends to delegate small, rolling portions of each fund’s ether or solana to a network
of professional validators. Rewards earned for securing the networks will flow back to the ETF,
minus validator and administrative fees, and will be reflected in the net asset value much like a
stock-dividend reinvestment. Because the process is passive and does not involve leverage or
re-hypothecation, the firm argues it poses less counter-party risk than traditional securities
lending. Still, slashing penalties, lock-up periods, and the possibility of temporary
illiquidity—especially for Solana—remain key risk factors disclosed in the funds’ amended
statements.
Record Inflows Signal Investor Appetite for Yield-Enhanced Crypto Exposure
The broader backdrop is one of surging demand for regulated digital-asset vehicles. According to
fund-flow data compiled last week, crypto investment products attracted $5.95 billion—the strongest
single-week haul on record—including $3.55 billion for bitcoin, $1.48 billion for ether, and $707 million
for solana. The flows coincided with bitcoin notching a fresh all-time high above $125,000 and
ether revisiting the upper end of its long-term range near $4,500. Analysts say the prospect of
capturing native staking yield through familiar ETF infrastructure could accelerate these trends,
pulling incremental capital from both retail and institutions that had previously balked at
self-custody. If the SEC signs off on Grayscale’s amended prospectuses in the coming weeks, the
U.S. market may quickly see its first truly “yield + spot” crypto ETFs trading alongside more
conventional equity and bond funds on major exchanges.
