One analyst believes Ethereum ETFs won’t capture as much attention as those for Bitcoin. For those anticipating a groundbreaking launch of an Ethereum spot ETF, Bloomberg’s ETF analyst Eric Balchunas suggests tempering expectations, hinting that the impact might not match that of Bitcoin’s ETF launches.
Despite the tremendous success of Bitcoin’s recent spot ETF introductions in the U.S., Balchunas opines that an Ethereum equivalent would barely make a ripple in comparison, referring to it as “small potatoes.”
The Significance of Ethereum ETFs Questioned
Balchunas shared his thoughts on X, stating:
“ETH enthusiasts, no offense, but compared to Bitcoin spot ETFs, this barely registers. It’s akin to a warm-up act following the main performance. Imagine Sister Hazel coming on after Nirvana, to put it in GenX terms.”
His skepticism stems from a mix of anecdotal evidence and public data, which suggest Ethereum ETFs won’t achieve anything near the success of their Bitcoin counterparts, which have attracted over $7 billion in inflows since their inception on January 11.
The battle to launch Bitcoin spot ETFs involved extensive litigation against the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), with the contention focusing on the susceptibility of the Bitcoin market to manipulation.
Following Grayscale’s legal victory last year, it, alongside BlackRock and Fidelity—the leading Bitcoin spot ETF providers—filed for Ethereum spot ETFs.
Comparing Ethereum and Bitcoin ETFs: Insights
Despite expectations that the SEC will eventually green-light Ethereum ETFs, their appeal to the market is debatable. Ethereum futures ETFs, introduced last October, saw negligible activity compared to the debut of Bitcoin’s futures ETF in October 2021.
In Canada, where Ethereum spot ETFs exist, the Purpose Ether ETF has assets under management (AUM) of $458 million CAD, in contrast to its Bitcoin counterpart’s $2.5 billion AUM. Considering Ether’s market cap is about a third of Bitcoin’s, its attractiveness within an ETF format seems limited by comparison.
A Bitwise survey from last year revealed that 71% of investment advisors preferred Bitcoin over Ethereum. An asset manager explained to CryptoPotato that Bitcoin ETFs hold more significance due to the institutional market’s limited differentiation between the two cryptocurrencies.