Fidelity has submitted an amended S-1 registration statement to the Securities and Exchange Commission for its proposed Ethereum ETF, ahead of upcoming deadlines required for such funds. The revised statement no longer includes any mention of staking or staking rewards.
The original prospectus had stated that the fund planned to stake a portion of its assets through a staking provider, which would have resulted in earning staking rewards.
It is possible that this change was made due to the SEC’s concerns around staking cryptocurrencies, as evidenced by their lawsuit against Coinbase in June 2023 for offering staking services on their platform, which the SEC deemed a violation of securities laws.
This development coincides with a deadline for prospective Ethereum ETF issuers to submit amended 19b-4 forms, which was set for this morning. If these forms are approved and the S-1 registration statements become effective, these ETFs can then start trading.
The final deadline for VanEck’s proposed Ethereum ETF is May 23, by which the SEC must either approve or deny their 19b-4 forms.
