- BlackRock’s Staking Ethereum ETF (ETHB) launched with over $100 million in assets and $15.5 million in trading volume.
- The start was considered solid, but remained on the market without much hype.
BlackRock entered the market with its staked Ethereum ETF (ETHB) and delivered notable numbers on the first day of trading. According to Bloomberg analyst James Seyffart, the fund started with just over $100 million in assets under management and reached $15.5 million in trading volume by the end of most of the first day of trading.
At the start, BlackRock is also sending a clear signal regarding the price. Like Seyffart on X wrotethe new Ethereum staking ETF will have “the same fee as ETHA of 0.25%, but reduced to 0.12% for the first year or the first $2.5 billion in assets.” BlackRock is thus offering a fee incentive that is limited in time and volume, which should encourage early inflows.
BlackRock’s new Ethereum ETF delivers strong start without hype
From Seyffart’s perspective, the market launch on Thursday was significantly better than is usual for many new ETFs. First, he wrote that BlackRock’s staked Ether ETF “launched with just over $100 million in assets” and had turned over about $11.1 million as of about 2 p.m. Eastern time. According to Seyffart, this is “a pretty good start for any ETF”.
He later fleshed out the day’s balance: “The majority of trading is done and we are at $15.5 million in trading volume on the BlackRock Staked Ethereum ETF – ETHB,” he wrote. “Very, very solid for an ETF launch on Day 1.” This is particularly notable for the ETF because ETHB is not entering an empty market, but rather a competitive one.
The comparative figures that Seyffart placed next to it show how big the gap still is to the established sister product. ETHA, BlackRock’s existing spot ETF without a staking component, turned over $264.4 million and managed around $6.6 billion during the same period. Seyffart wrote that he would “monitor these two metrics over time.”
At the same time, it is striking that the launch did not cause any major public excitement despite the prominent name of BlackRock. An X user asked Seyffart when the product was even approved and why the launch didn’t make much bigger headlines.
Seyffart’s response was matter-of-fact and provides the context surrounding the muted reaction:
“Two things. First: It’s not huge news because there are already several other ETH staking ETFs that have been on the market for months. Second: There is no longer an ‘approval process’ with fixed dates because the SEC changed the rules for crypto ETFs.”
Public support also came from Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, whose company takes over custody, among other things. He congratulated BlackRock:
“We’re making crypto more accessible through familiar, established platforms. Wider access means more opportunity.”
Congrats to @BlackRock on the launch of their ETH staking ETP, ETHB.
We’re making crypto more accessible through familiar, trusted platforms. Wider access = more opportunity. https://t.co/Hwf5WKiwBJ pic.twitter.com/ksXh9nvzZn
— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) March 12, 2026
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