coinspress.com
Franklin Templeton has thrown its hat into the ring by filing for an ETF focused on ether, joining the fray in a competitive field of contenders.
In their filing, the financial behemoth expressed the aim of providing investors with a convenient avenue for exposure to ETH, simulating the experience of directly acquiring, holding, and trading the cryptocurrency, whether through peer-to-peer transactions or digital asset platforms.
This move follows similar actions from other players such as Ark 21Shares and BlackRock, who submitted S-1 filings for potential funds towards the end of the preceding year.
Franklin Templeton’s foray into an Ethereum ETF comes after their participation in the launch of a bitcoin ETF earlier in January, taking advantage of the green light given by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The filing also discloses Franklin’s interest in engaging in staking activities with the ETH held within the proposed fund, a strategy also embraced by Ark 21Shares as evidenced in their updated prospectus. Notably, Franklin’s filing lacks the bracketed language used by Ark 21Shares.
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The proposed staking activity involves potentially partnering with trusted staking providers, including affiliates of the Sponsor, with the fund standing to receive Ethereum tokens as staking rewards, possibly classified as income.
A decision on spot ETH ETFs is anticipated in May, with Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart estimating a 60% likelihood of SEC approval for such ETFs.