Holding Ethereum ETF now means you can receive regular interest payments, just like holding bonds?
Earlier this month, Grayscale announced that its Grayscale Ethereum Staking ETF (ETHE) had distributed the staking earnings earned between October 6, 2025 and December 31, 2025 to existing shareholders, marking the first time a U.S. spot crypto asset trading product has distributed staking earnings to its holders.
While this may seem like a routine on-chain practice to Web3 Native users, it marks a significant milestone in the history of crypto finance, signifying that Ethereum's native revenue has been packaged within the standard framework of traditional finance for the first time .
More noteworthy is that this is not an isolated event. At the on-chain data level, the Ethereum staking rate continues to climb, validators leaving the queue are gradually being absorbed, and those entering the queue are accumulating again. A series of changes are happening simultaneously.
These seemingly scattered signals are collectively pointing to a deeper question: Is Ethereum gradually evolving from an asset allocation focused on price fluctuations into an "interest-bearing asset" accepted by long-term funds and possessing stable return attributes ?
I. ETF Profit Distribution: A Traditional Investor's First Experience with Pledged Assets
Objectively speaking, for a long time, Ethereum staking was more like a technical experiment with a geeky vibe, confined to the "on-chain world".
Because it requires users to have basic knowledge of cryptography such as wallets and private keys, as well as to understand validator mechanisms, consensus rules, lock-up periods and penalty logic. Although liquidity staking (LSD) protocols, represented by Lido Finance, have lowered the barrier to entry to a considerable extent, the staking rewards themselves are still mainly in the native crypto context (such as stETH and other wrapped tokens).
Ultimately, for most Web2 investors, this system is neither intuitive nor easily accessible, representing a significant hurdle.
Now, this gap is being bridged by ETFs. According to Grayscale's distribution plan, ETHE holders will receive $0.083178 for each share they hold. This amount reflects the proceeds from staking and selling of shares during the corresponding period, and the distribution will take place on January 6, 2026 (the distribution date), and will be made available to investors who held ETHE shares as of January 5, 2026 (the record date).
In short, it doesn't come from business operations, but from cybersecurity and consensus participation itself. In the past, such returns existed almost exclusively within the crypto industry, but now they are being packaged into familiar financial shells like ETFs. Through US stock accounts, traditional 401(k) or mutual fund investors can obtain native returns (in US dollars) generated by Ethereum network consensus without having access to their private keys.
It is important to emphasize that this does not mean that Ethereum staking has achieved full compliance, nor does it mean that regulators have given a unified interpretation of ETF staking services. However, in economic terms, a key change has occurred: for the first time, non-crypto native users have indirectly obtained the native benefits generated by Ethereum network consensus without needing to understand nodes, private keys, and on-chain operations.
From this perspective, the distribution of returns by ETFs is not an isolated event, but rather the first step for Ethereum staking to enter the broader capital market's view.
Grayscale is not alone in this; 21Shares' Ethereum ETF also announced that it will distribute the proceeds earned from staking ETH to existing shareholders. The distribution amount is $0.010378 per share, and the relevant ex-dividend and payment process has been disclosed.
This is undoubtedly a great start, especially for institutions like Grayscale and 21Shares, which have influence in both the TradeFi and Web3 fields. Its demonstration effect goes far beyond a single dividend distribution. It will undoubtedly drive the effective implementation and popularization of Ethereum staking and yield distribution in practice, and also signifies that the Ethereum ETF is no longer just a shadow asset that follows price fluctuations, but a financial product with real cash flow generation capabilities.
Looking at the longer term, as this model is validated, it is possible that traditional asset management giants such as BlackRock and Fidelity will follow suit, potentially injecting hundreds of billions of dollars of long-term investment funds into Ethereum.
II. Record-high pledge ratios and the disappearance of "exiting the queue"
If ETF returns represent a breakthrough in narrative, then changes in the total collateral ratio and collateral queue more directly reflect the behavior of funds themselves.
First, the Ethereum staking ratio has reached a new all-time high. According to statistics from The Block, more than 36 million ETH are currently staked on the Ethereum Beacon Chain, accounting for nearly 30% of the network's circulating supply, with a staked market value of over $118 billion, setting a new record. The previous record for the highest percentage of circulating supply was 29.54%, which occurred in July 2025.
From a supply and demand perspective, the large amount of ETH being staked means that they have temporarily withdrawn from the free market, and also indicates that a considerable portion of the circulating ETH is shifting from a high-frequency trading asset to a long-term allocation asset that plays a functional role.
In other words, ETH is no longer just a gas, medium of exchange, or speculative tool, but is taking on the role of a "means of production"—it participates in the operation of the network through staking and continuously generates returns.
Meanwhile, intriguing changes have occurred in the validator queue. As of this writing, the Ethereum PoS staking exit queue is nearly empty, while the staking queue continues to grow (over 2.73 million ETH). In short, a large amount of ETH is currently being locked in the system for an extended period.
Unlike trading, staking is a low-liquidity, long-term allocation method that emphasizes stable returns. The fact that funds are willing to re-enter the staking queue means at least one thing: at the current stage, more and more participants are willing to accept the opportunity cost of this long-term lock-up .
If we consider the distribution of institutional ETF returns, record-high staking ratios, and changes in the queue structure together, we can see a relatively clear trend: Ethereum staking is evolving from an early on-chain participant bonus into a TradFi structured yield layer that is gradually being accepted by the traditional financial system and re-evaluated by long-term funds.
While none of them alone are sufficient to constitute a trend judgment, when put together, they are outlining the gradual maturation of the Ethereum staking economy.
III. The Future of the Accelerated Maturation of the Staking Market
However, this does not mean that staking has made ETH a "risk-free asset". On the contrary, with the change in the participant structure, the types of risks faced by staking are shifting. Technological risks are gradually being absorbed, while structural risks, liquidity risks, and the cost of understanding the mechanism are becoming more important.
As is well known, in the last regulatory cycle, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) frequently wielded its big stick, taking enforcement action against multiple liquidity staking projects, including filing charges of unregistered securities against MetaMask/Consensys, Lido/stETH, and Rocket Pool/rETH, which once brought uncertainty to the long-term development of Ethereum ETFs.
From a practical perspective, whether and how ETFs participate in staking is essentially more of a product process and compliance structure design issue than a rejection of the Ethereum network itself. As more institutions explore the boundaries in practice, the market is voting with real funds.
For example, BitMine has staked over 1 million ETH on Ethereum PoS, reaching 1.032 million ETH, worth approximately $3.215 billion, which represents a quarter of its total ETH holdings (4.143 million ETH).
In conclusion, Ethereum staking has evolved to the point where it is no longer a niche activity within the geek community.
When ETFs begin to distribute returns steadily, when long-term funds are willing to wait 45 days to enter the consensus layer, and when 30% of ETH is transformed into a security barrier, we are witnessing Ethereum officially building a native return system that is accepted by the global capital market.
Understanding this change itself is perhaps just as important as participating in it.
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