Coinbase Leads as Top Custodian for New Ethereum ETFs

Coinbase is acting as the custodian for eight out of nine newly approved Ethereum (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs), as reported by CEO Brian Armstrong.

The new ETFs, which launched in the US on Tuesday, include offerings from major firms like BlackRock, Fidelity, 21Shares, Invesco, Franklin Templeton, VanEck, Bitwise, and two from Grayscale.

What are we expecting today for the Ethereum ETFs?

We expect them to begin trading tomorrow. That means we should see a bunch of filings on SEC site today that say the ETFs’ prospectuses have gone “effective”. Likely after or around market close. Here are the race entrants: pic.twitter.com/AkBxEjBRvv

— James Seyffart (@JSeyff) July 22, 2024

Fidelity has opted to use its own custody services rather than Coinbase, while VanEck has named Gemini as its primary custodian but will also use Coinbase Custody as an additional option.

Armstrong hailed the approval of these ETFs as a major advancement for regulatory clarity, asserting that the SEC’s decision affirms Ethereum is not classified as a security.

On their first trading day, Ethereum ETFs saw around $165 million in outflows, largely driven by $484.1 million exiting Grayscale’s ETF, which had transitioned from the Grayscale Ethereum Trust.

These figures do not account for data from BlackRock and Invesco.