BlackRock files Delaware name registration for iShares Staked Ethereum ETF

BlackRock appears to be looking to launch a new staked Ethereum fund, according to Delaware name registration on Wednesday. 

The iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF filing was submitted by the same registration agent, Daniel Schweiger, a BlackRock managing director, who filed the asset manager’s first iShares Ethereum fund in late 2023. 

A Delaware name registration is one of the first public signals that a new exchange-traded fund is in the works. According to senior Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, a BlackRock filing for the new iShares ETH staking fund is “coming soon.”

Nasdaq submitted an updated 19b-4 filing to add staking to BlackRock’s existing iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) in July. Rival crypto asset managers, including 21 Shares and Grayscale, among others, have also previously submitted proposals to update their Ethereum funds.

ETHA is the largest Ethereum ETF by assets under management, with nearly $11.5 billion in total holdings as of Nov. 17, according to SoSoValue. The fund has seen $165 million in outflows amid a market-wide pullback. 

Although the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission during the second Trump administration has been significantly more permissive in letting more crypto-related exchange-traded products come to market, relatively few funds offering staking rewards have been greenlit. 

In October, Grayscale received approval to enable staking for its U.S. Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHE) and Ethereum Mini Trust ETF (ETH) products, becoming the first spot-market funds registered under the Securities Act of 1933 to unlock staking rewards for holders. 

In July, REX‑Osprey came to market with a staking Solana ETF using the less common Investment Company Act of 1940. REX-Osprey also unveiled an ETH staking fund via the 1940 Act ETF structure in September. 

BlackRock's Head of Digital Assets Robert Mitchnick has previously said he expects the SEC to approve ETH ETF staking as "a next phase."