Cathie Wood’s Ark Investment Management has decided to step back from the competition to launch an Ether exchange-traded fund (ETF), as the company’s name has been removed from the application submitted to 21Shares.
21Shares has now rebranded the Ethereum spot ETF as the 21Shares Core Ethereum ETF, following Ark Invest’s withdrawal from the partnership. The amended Form S-1 for the ETF shows no changes to the fees structure.
Despite recognizing the potential and long-term value of Ethereum, a representative from Ark Invest confirmed that the firm has chosen to reassess its investment strategy and will not be proceeding with an Ether ETF at this time.
However, this decision does not impact the collaboration between 21Shares and ARK Invest on other projects, such as the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF that was launched in January.
Earlier this year, Ark and 21Shares joined forces to introduce one of the 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. The Ark 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) has accumulated $3.2 billion in assets, ranking fourth in the category after BlackRock Inc.’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which leads in terms of assets and inflows with $19 billion.
In their partnership, 21Shares sponsored the ETF, with Delaware Trust Company serving as the trustee. The underlying Ether assets are securely held by Coinbase Custody Trust Company, while ARK Investment Management acted as a sub-adviser responsible for promoting the shares to investors.
Recently, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved 19b-4 forms for eight Ethereum ETFs, although issuers still need their S-1 statements to be effective before trading can begin.
“We are excited about the SEC’s approval of the 19b-4 forms and remain dedicated to expanding access to crypto as an asset class for U.S. investors,” 21Shares stated.
For more information, experts caution that spot Ether ETFs may not be as beneficial for the industry as initially thought.