blockworks.co
Swiss-based Laser Digital, the digital asset subsidiary of Japanese investment bank Nomura, is reportedly planning to introduce an alternative to spot ETH ETFs.
Unlike the nine ether ETFs launched three days ago, Laser Digital’s ETH fund would generate yield and accrue rewards from the underlying Ethereum blockchain network, according to Bloomberg.
These rewards are made up of the same token emissions and maximal extractable value (MEV) that is accrued by Ethereum validators running their own node, or users staking ETH with a liquid staking platform like Lido. It’s a notably absent element with the current ETH ETFs.
According to Bloomberg, Galaxy Digital will potentially assist Laser Digital in running the validator nodes that generate the yield for investors.
The product is planned to be available only to non-US accredited investors in early September. Nomura previously launched an ETH-focused fund in late 2023.
The firm wasn’t immediately available to comment when reached.
Interest in crypto by traditional finance investors has been slowly but steadily increasing. In a recent EY survey, 55% of 270+ institutional investors claimed they planned to allocate capital to crypto over the next two to three years.
Laser Digital’s suite of crypto products already includes a Bitcoin Adoption Fund, Ethereum Adoption Fund and Polygon Adoption Fund — all institutional products for accredited investors to gain BTC/ETH/MATIC exposure.