Share this article

BlackRock’s Ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF), the iShares Ethereum Trust, could become the first U.S. spot Ethereum fund to reach $1 billion in net inflows. The ETF, which trades under the ETHA ticker, has registered about $901 million in net capital just three weeks after launch and is on track to reach the milestone, data from Farside Investors shows.

Nate Geraci, president of The ETF Store, is confident that ETHA will reach $1 billion in inflows this week, adding that it is one of the six most successful ETF launches of the year.

iShares Ethereum ETF Raises Over $900 Million in

I think it’s almost certain we’ll hit the *$1 billion* mark this week.

As mentioned before, ETHA is already in the top 6 of launches in 2024 (4 out of the 5 others are spot btc ETFs).

— Nate Geraci (@NateGeraci) August 12, 2024

BlackRock’s fund that offers direct exposure to Bitcoin (BTC), the iShares Bitcoin Trust, or IBIT, was the first spot Bitcoin ETF to reach $1 billion in inflows. Thanks to consistent, massive inflows, it took just four days for the ETF to surpass the mark.

BlackRock’s ETF data shows a slower accumulation rate for Ethereum compared to Bitcoin. Demand for Ethereum ETFs, while growing, has not yet reached the level of interest in Bitcoin ETFs. However, it is not entirely unexpected.

Martin Leinweber, Director of Digital Asset Research & Strategy at MarketVector Indexes, previously said he expected more modest inflows into Ethereum ETFs compared to the substantial inflows into Bitcoin ETFs, which have attracted billions in capital in a short period of time.

Popular Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas estimated that demand for spot Ethereum ETFs could be about 15% to 20% of what’s seen in Bitcoin ETFs. His prediction came after the milestone approval of these products in May.

BlackRock’s ETHA could be the fastest-growing spot Ethereum ETF, but Grayscale’s competing fund, the Grayscale Ethereum ETF (ETHE), still dominates assets under management despite nearly $2.3 billion in outflows since converting from a trust.

ETHE currently holds $4.9 billion worth of Bitcoin, while ETHA has over $761 million in assets under management (AUM). At the current rate of accumulation, ETHE could soon surpass ETHA in AUM.

There is a possibility that ETHA will take over the Ethereum ETF market, but more observations are needed, especially since Grayscale has already offered its Ethereum Mini Trust.

The spin-off was seeded with 10% of the trust’s holdings and now has $935 million in AUM. Despite consistent capital in the low-cost fund, net inflows are still modest compared to BlackRock’s ETHA inflows.

BlackRock’s IBIT has overtaken Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF (GBTC) to become the largest spot Bitcoin fund in terms of Bitcoin holdings. The fund currently holds around 348,000 BTC, worth around $21 billion.

Share this article