In a move that inches the world's largest asset manager closer to offering an Ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF), BlackRock has registered a new trust called the iShares Ethereum Trust with the state of Delaware.
The trust brings the prospect of BlackRock launching a physically-backed Ether investment product another step forward.
Introduction
BlackRock manages over $10 trillion in assets across a range of mutual funds, ETFs, and other investment vehicles. The sheer size of capital at BlackRock's disposal ensures the firm sets key trends within finance. Over 74 million investors entrust BlackRock to steward their wealth.
News of BlackRock's Ethereum Trust registration therefore carries weight given the firm's reputation and reach. While BlackRock already offers funds with indirect cryptocurrency exposure, directly holding Ether would mark a significant expansion into digital assets.
In 2022 amidst crypto winter conditions, BlackRock leadership spoke glowingly on crypto's future as explained by CEO Larry Fink:
"We are hugely focused on cryptocurrency and digital assets... this is a huge revolution and we believe crypto is here to stay."
Drivers Behind BlackRock's Growing Crypto Embrace
A convergence of dynamics explains BlackRock's growing embrace of cryptocurrencies. On the regulatory front, policymaker attitudes shift from hostility towards constructive guidance. Improved regulatory clarity helps assuage institutional investor concerns around legal uncertainty that previously hindered meaningful exposure.
Additionally, client cash inflows towards crypto investment products necessitate moves by conservative giants like BlackRock and Vanguard to facilitate such demand. Failing to offer vehicles with direct ownership of coins like Bitcoin and Ether risks losing assets to competitors with less hesitancy around digital asset offerings.
On a broader scope, cryptocurrencies represent the digitization of the global monetary system. As borders dissolve into the internet era, holding non-sovereign and decentralized monies like Bitcoin makes increasing sense for investors worldwide. And Ether's role as the base asset lubricating decentralized finance rivals the strategic importance of oil over the last century.
Drivers for BlackRock's Crypto Embrace:
- Improving regulatory outlook
- Client cash inflows
- Macro trend of digitizing finance
Within BlackRock specifically, demographics may partially explain leadership's changing perspective. Both CEO Larry Fink and President Rob Kapito are 70 years old. They will pass the reins to a younger generation likely more appreciative of crypto's disruptive capacity.
Already, BlackRock hired former Goldman Sachs cryptocurrency head to oversee digital asset strategy in 2021. And Fink himself describes millenials as "so focused on the digitization of currencies".
Preparing institutional grade crypto investment tools today helps BlackRock cement relationships with those younger clients and next generation of world wealth.
Ethereum's Investment Case
Ether, Ethereum's native cryptocurrency, ranks as the second largest digital asset. It fuels an entire ecosystem of decentralized applications related to finance (DeFi), domains (DNS), organizations (DAOs), gaming, amongst other growing use cases.
Unlike Bitcoin which focuses on a specific application as digital gold, Ethereum resembles more of a digital oil empowering a next generation internet dubbed Web3.
In a world shifting from ownership to usership, access trumps possessions. Web3 and Ethereum enable that access in a decentralized format resistant to corporate and governmental gatekeeping vulnerable in traditionally centralized software formats.
Core Ethereum Investment Thesis:
- Enables next generation Internet aka Web3
- Decentralized structure resistant to censorship
- Facilitates digital ownership & access economy
Ether therefore offers exposure into the heart of digital infrastructure being built today to transform society through blockchain over the coming decades.
And indicators suggest Ethereum maintains its leadership position amongst blockchain networks even as competitors like Solana, Polkadot and others seek to address Ethereum's occasional congestion and scaling issues.
Ethereum settles over $1 trillion in transaction volume across decentralized applications annually and processes 1.5 million transactions daily, significantly more throughput than rival chains. The Ethereum ecosystem also massively outpaces other protocols in terms of developer mindshare with over 4,400 monthly active builders.
Metrics showing dominant platform usage and developer activity provide clues into which blockchain ends up winning mainstream adoption. And currently Ethereum ranks decisively above competition. Holding ETH gives investors direct access to that rapidly growing network.
What Could a BlackRock Ether ETF Unlock
With BlackRock's Ethereum Trust now registered and acknowledged directly by name, the door appears open for the asset manager to file for regulatory approval around a dedicated Ether product available to everyday public market investors.
Currently, no Ether ETF trades in the United States after the SEC rejected several filings from asset managers seeking to launch one. Product hopefuls like VanEck, Valkyrie, and Grayscale (in its conversion to an ETF structure away from its current trust format) wait in the wings pending any policy shifts.
Most expect the dam to eventually break on Ether ETF approvals as even SEC Chairman Gary Gensler stated they fall within his purview of "maybe ok" relative to the more strictly regulated spot Bitcoin market.
And blockchain-related policies constantly evolve. 2023 may finally welcome regulatory frameworks appropriate for institutional crypto adoption after years of uncertainty. BlackRock's Delaware Ethereum Trust therefore positions itself perfectly as a precursor to an ETF should favorable policy language materialize.
In Canada, where 3 Ether ETFs already trade, the impact on demand and prices from these products impressed. Assets invested in Canadian Ether ETFs grew from $200 million to over $1.4 billion through 2022. And hundreds of millions worth of ETH locks up inside these financial vehicles regularly.
A BlackRock sponsored Ether ETF stateside may spark similar demand growth in ETH investment products, not to mention the brand halo effect of associating with the world's preeminent asset manager.
Potential Impact of a BlackRock Ether ETF:
- Boosts mainstream investor ETH access
- Triggers rapid growth in ETH invested
- Provides stamp of institutional approval
On the flip side, risks exist around overestimating an ETF's impact. Naysayers downplay that buyers of fund shares primarily source their ETH from existing circulating supply via secondary markets. Only a fractional amount purchases ETH directly from miners.
Nonetheless, the sheer publicity and legitimacy of a BlackRock Ethereum ETF appearing plays into the crypto's broader maturation. Other titans like Fidelity, State Street, and Vanguard all map similar roads towards launching digital asset funds. That smart money continues positioning itself for crypto adoption supplies the strongest endorsement.
Conclusion: Macro Tailwinds Set Stage for ETH Growth
While plenty potential exists for volatility if macro conditions worsen, Ethereum looks positioned to continue outpacing most traditional asset categories. The expanding functionality of Web3 creates an ever-growing desire for the Ether tokens required to power decentralized activity.
Both institutional and retail interest in gaining exposure into this rapidly evolving cryptoeconomy shows little sign of letting up. BlackRock's latest move to formally register its Ethereum Trust domiciled in the United States projects readiness to meet its clients' demands within digital asset solutions.
Witnessing legacy titans like BlackRock pivot towards crypto, Ethereum specifically in this case, shows the prescience of dismissing digital assets as a passing fad expired years ago. In many ways, the financial services juggernauts opening their doors to cryptocurrency today play catch up to the retail masses who years ago already grasped hold of Ethereum and its tokenized future.