New BlackRock Staked Ethereum Fund to Pay 82% of Rewards to Investors
BlackRock is launching the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust (ETHB) on Nasdaq, enabling investors to gain exposure to Ethereum with staking rewards. ETHB will distribute 82% of staking rewards to investors via monthly payments, retaining 18% for the trust, custodians, and service providers. The fund will stake between 70-95% of its Ethereum holdings. ETHB joins BlackRock’s digital asset suite alongside the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA). BlackRock expects some investors to shift from ETHA and direct ETH holdings to ETHB, given growing interest in staking. Custodians for the fund are Coinbase and Anchorage Digital, with Coinbase earning 10% of staking rewards, reduced to 6% at $20 billion AUM. Validators include Figment, Galaxy Blockchain Infrastructure, and Attestant Limited. Competition includes Grayscale's Ethereum funds, which pass through 77–94% of staking rewards but charge higher management fees (up to 2.5%) than ETHB’s 0.25%. REX-Osprey ETH + Staking ETF, launched earlier, offers a 0.75% fee but invests most assets in other funds. ETHB aims to attract both traditional and existing crypto investors seeking staking benefits.
