$484 Million Outflow from Grayscale’s Ethereum Trust on ETF Launch Day

TLDR

• Grayscale’s Ethereum ETF (ETHE) saw $484 million in outflows on its first day of trading.
• BlackRock’s Ethereum ETF (ETHA) led with $265 million in inflows.
• The total trading volume for Ethereum ETFs on day one was $1 billion.
• Grayscale’s ETF has a high expense ratio of 2.5%, while competitors offer lower fees.
• The Ethereum price remained stable around $3,450 during the ETF launches.

The long-awaited spot Ethereum ETFs began trading on U.S. exchanges, marking a significant moment for cryptocurrency investors.

These new investment products allow people to gain exposure to Ethereum without directly owning the digital asset.

On the first day of trading, the Ethereum ETFs saw a total volume of $1 billion. This figure represents about 23% of the volume that spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded on their debut earlier this year.

The launch brought both inflows and outflows, with some ETFs performing better than others.

BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) emerged as the leader among the new offerings. It attracted $265 million in inflows on its first day, showing strong investor interest.

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

Other new entrants also saw positive results. The Bitwise Ethereum ETF (ETHW) received over $200 million in inflows, while Fidelity’s Ethereum ETF (FETH) brought in more than $70 million.

However, not all ETFs experienced inflows. The Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE), which converted from a closed-end fund to an ETF, faced significant outflows.

Investors pulled $484 million from ETHE on its first day of trading as an ETF. This outflow represents about 5% of the fund’s total assets under management.

The contrasting performance between Grayscale’s offering and the new ETFs may be partly due to differences in fees. ETHE has an expense ratio of 2.5%, making it the most expensive among U.S. Ethereum ETFs.

In comparison, other issuers are offering much lower fees, typically ranging from 0.15% to 0.25%.

Grayscale has introduced a new product, the Ethereum Mini Trust (ETH), with a more competitive fee structure. This fund charges only 0.15% and even waives this fee for the first six months or up to $2 billion in assets.

This move could help Grayscale attract new investments and potentially reduce outflows from its main Ethereum product.

Despite the excitement surrounding the ETF launches, the price of Ethereum remained relatively stable. It traded around $3,450 throughout the day, suggesting that investors are taking a cautious approach to these new investment vehicles.

The launch of Ethereum ETFs follows the successful introduction of spot Bitcoin ETFs earlier this year. While the first-day trading volume for Ethereum ETFs was lower than that of Bitcoin ETFs, it still represents a significant milestone for the cryptocurrency industry.