Grayscale, a crypto asset manager, has launched staking for its exchange-traded products (ETPs), marking it as the first US-based crypto fund issuer to provide staking-based passive income options.
On Monday, Grayscale announced that its Ether (ETH) ETFs — the Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust ETF (ETH) and Grayscale Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHE) — are now the first US-listed spot crypto funds enabling staking, describing this achievement as “another first-mover milestone.”
Grayscale’s Solana (SOL) fund, the Grayscale Solana Trust (GSOL), has also activated staking and is pending regulatory approval for uplisting to an ETP, which will position it as the first spot Solana ETP to allow staking, according to a post on the company’s account on X.
By enabling staking for Ethereum and Solana-based products, Grayscale seeks to provide investors with exposure to the “long-term value accrual of these networks while upholding the funds’ core objectives,” as stated by the company.
“Staking in our spot Ethereum and Solana funds embodies the first mover innovation Grayscale was established to provide,” said Grayscale CEO Peter Mintzberg. “As the leading digital asset-focused ETF issuer worldwide by AUM, we feel our trusted and expansive platform uniquely positions us to transform new opportunities like staking into real value potential for investors.”
Both ETHE and ETH are ETPs registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, which means they aren’t subject to the same regulations as crypto ETFs registered under the same act.
“ETHE and ETH hold digital assets; however, investing in ETHE and ETH is not a direct investment in digital assets,” the company remarked.
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