ARK Invest and 21Shares Revise Ethereum ETF Proposal, Staking Component Removed
Cathie Wood's ARK Invest and 21Shares have made changes to their spot ether exchange-traded fund proposal, notably removing the staking component.
ARK Invest and 21Shares, who previously included information about the possibility of staking a portion of the trust’s assets, have now removed it from the updated filing submitted on Friday.
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas discussed the implications of this change in a recent post, suggesting that it could be interpreted in various ways. While it might indicate a proactive response to potential SEC feedback, Balchunas noted that there haven’t been any official comments from the SEC yet. He speculated that the removal of the staking component could be a strategic move to simplify the application process or a last-ditch effort to address possible concerns.
ARK Invest and 21Shares have not provided immediate comment on the matter.
The application for the spot Ethereum ETF was submitted by ARK Invest and 21Shares in September, with the aim of offering direct exposure to ETH and trading on the Cboe BZX Exchange using the CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate – New York Variant.
READ MORE: Vitalik Buterin’s New Proposal to Simplify Ethereum’s Account Handling
In this arrangement, 21Shares acts as the sponsor of the trust, with Delaware Trust Company serving as the trustee, and Coinbase Custody Trust Company handling ETH custody. ARK Investment Management is designated as the sub-adviser, responsible for assisting in the marketing of the Shares.
However, optimism regarding the SEC’s approval of spot Ethereum ETFs has waned in recent months. Balchunas revised his estimate of the likelihood of approval downward, citing decreased confidence from about 70% to 25% for approval by late May.
Alexander Stefanov
Reporter at CoinsPress
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