Connect with us
DAPA Banner

Crypto World

BlackRock’s ETHB staking ETF leans on Figment as Ethereum yield play goes mainstream

Published

on

BlackRock’s ETHB staking ETF leans on Figment as Ethereum yield play goes mainstream

BlackRock’s ETHB staking ETF routes 70–95% of its Ethereum into validators run by Figment and others.

Summary

  • ETHB is BlackRock’s first Ethereum ETF that adds staking rewards on top of spot exposure, with roughly 70–95% of ETH staked at any given time.
  • Figment runs part of the validator infrastructure for ETHB alongside Galaxy Digital and Attestant, handling block proposals, attestations, and network security duties for the fund’s staked ETH.
  • The ETF launched with about $100–107m in assets, did roughly $15.5m in first-day volume, and passes around 82% of gross staking rewards to shareholders, with a 0.25% fee cut to 0.12% on the first $2.5b for a year.

BlackRock’s new iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHB) is pulling institutional staking into the ETF wrapper — and delegating a crucial piece of that infrastructure to Figment. The fund, listed on Nasdaq under the ticker ETHB, is BlackRock’s first crypto product that offers staking rewards on top of spot exposure, staking between roughly 70% and 95% of its ether holdings through professional validator operators. Figment has been named one of the key node operators for ETHB, responsible for running Ethereum validation infrastructure, processing transactions, and helping secure the network on behalf of the trust.

ETHB quietly marks a structural shift in how traditional finance can access Ethereum’s (ETH) proof‑of‑stake economy. At launch, the ETF came to market with around $100–107 million in initial assets and generated about $15.5 million in trading volume on its first day, according to multiple data providers. Under normal conditions, the fund stakes most of that ether, returning roughly 82% of gross staking rewards to shareholders, with the current implied annualized yield around 3.1%, while BlackRock and its partners retain the remainder as fees. Management fees are set at 0.25%, temporarily reduced to 0.12% on the first $2.5 billion in assets for the first year, a pricing structure designed to pull flows away from un‑staked spot products.

Advertisement

Figment’s role is central to that pitch. As one of Ethereum’s largest institutional staking providers, the company operates validators that handle block proposals and attestations for ETHB’s staked share of ether, alongside other providers such as Galaxy Digital and Attestant. By outsourcing validation to specialist firms instead of building its own infrastructure, BlackRock can offer regulated clients exposure to staking yields while keeping operational risk and technical complexity at arm’s length. That model also gives Ethereum another anchor tenant in its validator set, deepening the pool of professionally run nodes that secure the network.

For Ethereum itself, the timing is favorable. ETH is trading around $2,201, up roughly 6.8% in the last 24 hours, with a 24‑hour low near $2,041.70 and high just above $2,200, on nearly $27.76 billion in volume. Staked ether has already hit record highs on‑chain, and the arrival of a yield‑bearing BlackRock ETF that locks up a large portion of its holdings reinforces that supply sink while giving institutions a familiar wrapper for participating in Ethereum’s security budget. For live data, readers can follow crypto.news’ dedicated Ethereum price page, and for more on ETF‑driven flows and Ethereum’s evolving role, see our recent coverage of Bitcoin ETF inflows after Iran tensions, analysis of macro shocks and BTC price volatility, and Michael Saylor’s continued treasury‑driven Bitcoin accumulation.

Advertisement

Source link

Continue Reading
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

Crypto World

Metaplanet turns stock volatility into a 210,000 BTC war chest

Published

on

Metaplanet to spend $127m on BTC—dilution fear hurts shares

Metaplanet sold equity and fixed‑strike warrants at a premium, monetizing stock volatility into up to $531 million of dry powder for a 210,000 BTC, yen‑hedged balance‑sheet bet.

Summary

  • Metaplanet raised about $255 million via a private share placement at a 2% premium, paired with fixed‑strike warrants at a 10% premium for another ~$276 million if exercised.
  • Warrants only trigger if the stock trades above a Bitcoin‑linked mNAV threshold, turning equity upside and volatility into self‑funding BTC accumulation instead of pure dilution.
  • The strategy aims to make Metaplanet “Japan’s MicroStrategy,” swapping yen‑denominated equity for a structurally scarce asset and using BTC as a long‑term currency and equity hedge.

Metaplanet just weaponized its equity to buy more Bitcoin (BTC). This is not a vibes-based CT announcement; it is a highly engineered capital markets trade aimed squarely at becoming “Japan’s MicroStrategy,” with a yen hedge bolted on.

Deal structure in plain language

Metaplanet raised about 255 million dollars from global institutional investors via a private placement of new shares priced at a 2% premium to market. Alongside that, it issued fixed‑strike warrants at a 10% premium, which, if fully exercised, could bring in roughly another 276 million dollars. In total, the company is unlocking up to 531 million dollars in incremental “firepower” to push toward its stated target of holding 210,000 BTC on its balance sheet.

Advertisement

The key innovation is not “we raised money and we’ll buy Bitcoin.” It is the explicit monetization of equity volatility: investors are effectively paying for convexity on the stock, and Metaplanet is harvesting that option value to buy hard assets.

Why the warrant design matters

The warrants are struck 10% above the reference price, so they only get exercised if Metaplanet’s share price trades higher, i.e., if the market buys the Bitcoin accumulation story. That creates a self‑funding loop: volatility and upside in the equity translate directly into more capital to deploy into BTC. Commentators on the thread correctly highlight this as “the real innovation,” noting that Metaplanet benefits both from stock volatility and from Bitcoin appreciation.

In market structure terms, the firm is short call options on its own equity and long Bitcoin. It is selling path‑dependent equity upside today to increase its exposure to a non‑sovereign monetary asset it believes will outperform the yen and, likely, Japanese equities over the long term.

Advertisement

Japan, currency risk, and the “denominator”

Where MicroStrategy pioneered this model in the US, Metaplanet adds another layer: a currency hedge against a structurally weak yen. One international holder in the replies openly frames the move as bullish for Japan, arguing that the yen “could benefit greatly from Bitcoin.” Others go further, calling the strategy a matter of corporate “survival” rather than mere profit, a blunt acknowledgment of what sustained currency debasement does to domestic balance sheets.

Another respondent captures the denominator problem cleanly: institutional capital is “waking up to the reality of the denominator” and “building a fortress out of math,” with volatility as the energy source to forge a new standard. Translated into market terms: Metaplanet is trading a dilutable equity, priced in a weakening unit of account, for an asset with a credibly scarce supply schedule.

Signal to the market

Reaction on X swings from praise—calling the placement a “masterclass in capital strategy”—to confusion and outright skepticism about what Metaplanet is and whether this is a scam. That bifurcation is typical early in any new corporate balance‑sheet regime: most participants do not yet speak the language of corporate‑fi‑meets‑Bitcoin, and the documentation reads like jargon to anyone not trained in derivatives.

Advertisement

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Crypto World

Cardano jumps 8%, $0.30 in focus as funding rate turn positive amid rising OI

Published

on

Cardano jumps 8%, $0.30 in focus as funding rate turn positive amid rising OI
  • Cardano (ADA) rises above $0.28 as whale accumulation boosts short-term momentum.
  • Positive funding rates and higher open interest support near-term gains.
  • The key levels to watch are the support at $0.25–$0.27 and the resistance near $0.30–$0.35.

Cardano (ADA) has surged over 8% in the past 24 hours, breaking above key short-term resistance levels.

The price is now hovering around $0.286, bringing the $0.30 mark into focus for traders.

Momentum has picked up sharply as derivatives data show positive funding rates and rising open interest.

This price movement has attracted attention from mid-tier whale wallets.

These investors, holding between one million and ten million ADA, have been actively accumulating during recent dips. Their buying has added upward pressure, tightening available supply in the market.

Advertisement

Meanwhile, larger whale wallets, holding ten million to a hundred million ADA, have been reducing positions, suggesting some distribution at higher price levels, creating a mixed picture in the whale ecosystem.

The balance between accumulation and distribution will likely influence price swings in the coming days.

Technical analysis

From a technical perspective, ADA has broken above a descending trendline that had capped price action near $0.25 for weeks.

This breakout has set the stage for further gains as short-term indicators lean bullish.

Advertisement

The relative strength index (RSI) sits above 50, indicating that momentum favours buyers, but it is not yet in overbought territory.

The MACD has crossed above its signal line, and its histogram is expanding, signalling that buying momentum is gaining strength.

Cardano price analysis
Cardano price chart | Source: TradingView

Price action has shown that the 20-day exponential moving average (EMA) is providing support near $0.27.

Eyes are now on the 50-day EMA around $0.29 and the 100-day EMA closer to $0.34.

Breaking these levels could open the door to further upside, but failing to hold above the short-term support zone could result in a pullback.

Advertisement

In addition, Cardano’s open interest is also rising, and the funding rate has turned positive, meaning that long positions are paying shorts, which historically aligns with bullish momentum in the near term.

Cardano price forecast

In the short term, traders should monitor $0.30 as the next psychological resistance.

A breakout above $0.30 could target the $0.34–$0.35 range, guided by key EMAs and prior swing highs.

While momentum indicators suggest room for further upside, the market will need consistent buying volume to sustain higher levels.

Advertisement

On the downside, the immediate support lies near $0.27, with a more significant level around $0.25.

A drop below $0.25 could test deeper support near $0.24, potentially signalling short-term bearish pressure.

Advertisement

Source link

Continue Reading

Crypto World

Bitmine’s Ether Holdings Reach 4.6M ETH, About 3.8% of Supply

Published

on

Ethereum, Tom Lee, Ether Price, MicroStrategy, Staking

Bitmine Immersion Technologies has accelerated the pace of its Ether purchases in recent weeks, chairman Tom Lee said Monday, following the company’s over-the-counter purchase of 5,000 ETH directly from the Ethereum Foundation.

Lee said Bitmine added 60,999 Ether (ETH) over the past week, up from a recent weekly average of about 45,000 to 50,000 ETH.

The purchases bring the publicly traded company’s Ethereum treasury to 4.596 million ETH, giving Bitmine control of about 3.81% of the token’s total supply. The company said its combined crypto holdings, cash and other investments total about $11.5 billion.

Bitmine said that 3,040,515 ETH, about 66% of its holdings, are currently staked, valued at roughly $6.6 billion at an Ether price of $2,185.

Advertisement

The company estimates its staking operations generate about $180 million in annualized revenue. It plans to expand staking through its Made in America Validator Network (MAVAN), expected to launch in the coming months.