Crypto investments are changing: This is how Wall Street is making Bitcoin & Co. more attractive for investors

• BlackRock launched the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHB) on Nasdaq on March 12, 2026
• According to the fund prospectus, between 70 and 95 percent of the fund holdings should be staked
• BlackRock manager Jay Jacobs compares staking returns to a dividend from stocks

Staking as a “dividend” for crypto investors

BlackRock launched the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF on NASDAQ on March 12, 2026 under the symbol ETHB. As the company announced in an official press release, the product allows investors to gain exposure to Ethereum while generating income by staking a portion of the tokens held. Staking involves depositing cryptocurrencies on the network to validate transactions and secure the blockchain, for which rewards are distributed. Jay Jacobs, head of U.S. equity ETF operations at BlackRock, compared the principle to receiving a dividend from a stock in a March 15, 2026 conversation with Yahoo Finance. According to the fund prospectus, BlackRock plans to stake between 70 and 95 percent of the fund’s holdings. The income should be distributed monthly.

At the time of product launch, the annual staking yield for fully staked Ethereum was around 2.5 to 3 percent. For comparison: the dividend yield of the S&P 500 at that time was around 1.1 percent, the yield on ten-year US government bonds was around 4.2 percent. This makes the product fundamentally different from previous crypto ETFs such as the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF or the iShares Ethereum Trust ETF, which only reflect the price development of the respective cryptocurrency without generating ongoing income.

Grayscale set the first milestone

The development towards income-oriented crypto ETFs has its origins at Grayscale. In a press release dated January 5, 2026, the company announced that its Grayscale Ethereum Staking ETF, under the symbol ETHE, became the first publicly traded crypto ETF in the United States to distribute staking rewards to investors. The distribution was $0.083178 per share and included staking income earned between October and December 2025. Grayscale had already activated staking for its Ethereum products in October 2025, making it the first provider to integrate this function into an ETF in the USA.

Since then, the offering has expanded significantly. On March 12, 2026, Grayscale also launched the Avalanche Staking ETF under the symbol GAVA on Nasdaq, which combines exposure to the AVAX token with staking income. According to Yahoo Finance, the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF and the VanEck Solana ETF, which also offer staking returns, have been on the market since October 2025. The product range of income-oriented crypto ETFs is growing at a rapid pace.

What the development means for investors

David Grider, partner at digital asset investment firm Finality Capital, weighed in on the development to Yahoo Finance. For long-term private investors, the ETF shell is the most convenient, cost-efficient and profitable way to implement crypto exposure. Although experienced investors could also hold the underlying tokens directly and stake them themselves, the regulated ETF framework offers easier access for the majority.

The regulatory framework has significantly promoted this development. The passage of the GENIUS Act, which provides a legal framework for stablecoins, as well as other pending legislative initiatives in the US Congress, have driven the wider adoption of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies. Grider emphasized to Yahoo Finance that the ability to offer staking in ETFs is directly related to the changing regulatory environment. However, whether the staking returns remain at the previous level in the long term depends on the development of the respective networks and the number of staking participants.

Dominik Maier, editorial team at finanzen.net

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