Grayscale declares first Ethereum staking payout for US-listed ETF

Cointelegraph

Grayscale has declared a staking rewards distribution for its Ethereum Staking exchange-traded fund (ETF), the first time a US-listed spot crypto exchange-traded product (ETP) has scheduled a payout tied to onchain staking activity.

Grayscale Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHE) shareholders will receive about $0.08 per share from proceeds of the sale of staking rewards, with the payout scheduled for Tuesday based on holdings recorded at market close on Monday.

Grayscale activated staking for its Ethereum products on Oct. 6, with staking conducted through institutional custodians and third-party validator providers. The move made ETHE and Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust ETF (ETH) the first US-listed spot crypto ETPs to gain exposure to Ether staking.

Staking is the process of locking up cryptocurrency on a proof-of-stake blockchain to help validate transactions and secure the network in exchange for periodic rewards. In the case of Grayscale’s Ethereum Trust ETF, rewards are converted to cash and distributed to investors in dollars rather than being paid out in Ether (ETH).

Grayscale’s funds operate outside the Investment Company Act of 1940, the primary statute governing US ETFs, a structure that permits staking but carries different regulatory protections as traditional US ETFs.

Founded in 2013, Grayscale Investments is a digital asset manager that sponsors crypto investment products, with about $31 billion in assets under management, according to the company.

The ETF was up around 2% in early-day trading, according to Yahoo Finance data.

Ethereum, Grayscale, Staking, Ethereum ETF, BlackRock, ETF

US spot Ether ETFs and the push toward staking

While Grayscale is currently the only US-traded fund to issue payouts linked to Ether staking, several spot Ether ETFs from major asset managers are awaiting regulatory approval from the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

In March, Cboe BZX filed a proposed rule change with US regulators seeking approval to add staking to the Fidelity Ethereum Fund. The proposal would allow the fund to stake some or all of its Ether through third-party providers, and followed a similar filing submitted in February for the 21Shares Core Ethereum ETF.

In November, BlackRock registered a staked Ethereum exchange-traded fund in Delaware, an early procedural step toward launching a staking-enabled product that would sit alongside its existing spot Ether ETF. Its iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA), which launched in July 2024, currently does not include staking.

US spot Ether ETFs began trading in July 2024, making 2025 the first full calendar year in which they were available to investors. During the year, the funds attracted $9.6 billion in inflows.

According to CoinMarketCap data, US spot Ether ETFs collectively manage about $18 billion in assets.

BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) is the largest by market cap at roughly $11.1 billion, followed by Grayscale’s ETHE with about $4.1 billion and the Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust ETF at around $1.5 billion.

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Grayscale declares first Ethereum staking payout for US-listed ETF

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