In a flurry of anticipation, VanEck, ProShares, and Bitwise jointly ushered in a new era on October 2 by introducing a lineup of ETH-futures and ETH + BTC-futures ETFs. This move, though met with enthusiasm, hasn’t yet sparked the investment frenzy one might expect from such a groundbreaking development.
Bloomberg’s seasoned ETF analyst, Eric Balchunas, took to Twitter to capture the moment, calling it an “unprecedented day” with multiple ETFs debuting simultaneously. Despite this excitement, the initial response was lukewarm, leaving the market in anticipation of what’s to come.
Among the nine new ETF products introduced, five focus solely on Ether futures contracts, while the remaining four track a mix of Bitcoin and ETH futures contracts. However, on the first day of trading, these ETFs collectively saw a trading volume of less than $2 million. To put this into perspective, the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) recorded a staggering $1 billion in trading volume on its launch day in October 2021, a time when the crypto market was flourishing.
Notably, Valkyrie’s most popular ETF, which combines Bitcoin and Ether, accounted for a modest $882,000 in trading volume. Balchunas acknowledged that while this figure might seem low, it’s actually quite substantial for a typical traditional finance ETF launch. He emphasized that this simultaneous launch strategy was orchestrated by the SEC to prevent any single fund from monopolizing the market.
What’s clear is that the Ethereum futures ETFs are in it for the long haul. Despite the slow start, the market is abuzz with speculation about their future performance. Will these ETFs gain momentum in the marathon ahead, or is this a sign of challenges to come? Only time will reveal the true trajectory of these pioneering investment vehicles.
