Large Inflows into Ether ETFs on First Day of Trading

Exchange-traded Ether funds listed in the U.S. accumulated approximately $1.08 billion in trading volume on their first day—about 23% of the trading volume seen by spot Bitcoin ETFs on their debut.

According to preliminary data from Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, the Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE) and BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) recorded the highest volumes on July 23, with $458 million and $248.7 million, respectively.

The Fidelity Ethereum (FETH) and Bitwise Ethereum ETF (ETHW) followed with $137.2 million and $94.3 million, while the Ether ETF issued by 21Shares lagged, not surpassing the $10 million mark.

DAY ONE in the books for Eth ETFs who did $1b in total volume, which is 23% of what the spot bitcoin ETFs on their first Day and $ETHA did 25% of $IBIT‘s volume. The gap between $ETHE and The Newborn Eight is a healthy +$625m (a sizable chunk of which *should* convert to inflow pic.twitter.com/jaP4dKLrOs

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) July 23, 2024

Balchunas remarked that the $625 million generated by the “Newborn Eight” funds—excluding Grayscale’s ETHE—was “healthy” and predicted a “significant portion” of that amount would convert into inflows.

Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart estimated the inflows to range between $125 million and $325 million, contingent on the number of investors these companies engage with.

Okay everyone. Here are the details for the #Ethereum ETFs that we expect to launch next week. We are only missing details for Proshares’s ETF. 7 of the 10 funds have fee waivers. pic.twitter.com/5v3QnHOeub

— James Seyffart (@JSeyff) July 17, 2024

In January, ETFs saw an inflow of $655.2 million on their first trading day, including a $95 million outflow from Grayscale’s converted Bitcoin product.

This development followed the official implementation of the final S-1 forms by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, allowing these products to launch on Nasdaq, NYSE Arca, and the Chicago Board Options Exchange.

Fidelity, 21Shares, Bitwise, Franklin, and VanEck waived fees for their ETFs for a specified period or until the funds reached a certain amount in net assets.

The ETFs, excluding ETHE, will offer base fees ranging from 0.15% to 0.25%. ETHE’s fees remain at 2.5%.

BlackRock is providing a discounted fee of 0.12% for the first 12 months or until the fund reaches $2.5 billion in net assets, whichever comes first. Afterward, the fee will increase to 0.25%.

The Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust will start with a 0.12% fee, rising to 0.25% after 12 months or once it hits $2 billion in net assets. Invesco Galaxy’s Ether ETF is set at 0.25%.

Ether is currently trading at $3,470, fluctuating between $3,400 and $3,500 on the first trading day.