The SEC has delayed its decision on whether to allow staking for Grayscale’s proposed Ethereum spot ETFs.
The ETFs in question—Grayscale Ethereum Trust and Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust ETF—were filed by NYSE Arca on February 14, 2025. The filing included a rule change request to enable staking as part of their investment strategy.
SEC Pushes Back Grayscale Ethereum ETF Staking Deadline July
The SEC deadline for deciding on the original proposal was set to conclude on April 17. Under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the SEC is authorized to extend this review period for up to 90 days.
The agency has now exercised that option. This now allows the SEC to decide on this filing by July 2025.
Staking would allow the ETFs to earn rewards by participating in Ethereum’s proof-of-stake consensus mechanism, a feature not yet approved for any US spot crypto ETF.
Grayscale has proposed that staking be conducted exclusively by the sponsor without commingling funds. Also, Coinbase Custody would continue safeguarding the ETH assets.
The SEC’s delay is part of a broader pattern of cautious regulatory scrutiny over crypto ETF innovations, including similar filings from other asset managers.
Societe Generale has introduced USD CoinVertible (USDCV), a US dollar-backed stablecoin designed for institutional clients and fully compliant with MiCA regulations.
USDCV will launch on the Ethereum and Solana blockchains, and trading will begin in July 2025. The Bank of New York Mellon will serve as custodian for its reserves.
New Institutional Stablecoin Prioritizes Regulatory Compliance
Societe Generale-FORGE, a regulated arm of France’s Societe Generale bank, has officially announced the launch of USD CoinVertible (USDCV). This stablecoin targets only institutional users and is unavailable to US residents.
Running on Ethereum and Solana, USDCV offers fast settlement and enhanced interoperability for institutional markets.
The timing aligns with rising demand for regulated digital assets. Each USDCV is pegged to the US dollar, with reserves held by The Bank of New York Mellon.
“After the release of a MiCA-compliant EUR stablecoin (EURCV), the launch of a US Dollar version (USDCV) was the obvious next step for Societe Generale–FORGE as market adoption of stablecoins is growing exponentially. The stablecoin market remains largely US Dollar denominated. This new currency will enable our clients, either institutions, corporates or retail investors, to leverage the benefits of an institutional-grade stablecoin” said Jean-Marc Stenger, Chief Executive Officer of Societe Generale – FORGE.
Societe Generale-FORGE’s approach ensures strict supervision and transparency, meeting the evolving needs of European and global markets.
The French baking giant’s crypto arm will provide daily public updates detailing the composition and value of reserves. These disclosures will be readily available via their collateral disclosure page, allowing stakeholders to verify collateralization in real time.
The Bank of New York Mellon’s custodianship adds another degree of security, supporting Societe Generale-FORGE’s reputation for institutional-grade asset management.
This USD-backed launch follows the earlier success of EUR CoinVertible, Europe’s first institutional stablecoin on a public blockchain, introduced in April 2023. That initiative demonstrated Societe Generale-FORGE’s expertise in regulatory compliance and digital infrastructure.
After Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) has emerged as the next institutional favorite. According to Geoff Kendrick, Head of Digital Assets Research at Standard Chartered, corporate treasuries have purchased 1% of all ETH in circulation since the beginning of June.
This highlights the growing appetite among firms to increase their ETH exposure. Kendrick also shared with BeInCrypto that these corporate treasuries could eventually hold 10% of all ETH.
Institutions Aggressively Accumulate ETH in June
BeInCrypto previously reported that firms are accelerating their efforts to acquire ETH as part of their treasury strategy. According to the latest data, the Strategic ETH Reserve, which tracks entities holding Ethereum in their treasuries, now totals 2.33 million ETH, valued at over $9 billion.
These holdings, distributed among 64 entities, account for 1.93% of Ethereum’s supply. This marks a significant rise from the 789,705 ETH held in mid-May. In just over two months, the entities’ ETH holdings have surged by approximately 195%.
Notably, 113,000 ETH (approximately $409 million) is held by companies that revealed their positions for the first time this quarter.
Meanwhile, a few firms stand out for their massive holdings. For instance, BitMine Immersion Technologies, which initially committed $250 million to an ETH reserve, has already topped over $2 billion in ETH holdings in a month.
Standard Chartered’s Geoff Kendrick highlighted that public companies with digital assets on their balance sheets have acquired 1% of ETH’s circulating supply in just two months. What’s particularly noteworthy is the pace of acquisition—this rate is double that of Bitcoin purchases by corporate treasuries.
“This buying was almost as strong as ETH ETF buying, which has also been the strongest on record. We expect ETH treasury companies to eventually own 10% of all ETH, a 10x increase from here,” Kendrick told BeInCrypto.
He stressed that in terms of flows, ETH treasury companies are becoming more important than their BTC counterparts.
“ETH treasury companies make more sense than their BTC equivalents due to staking yield, DeFi leverage. And from a regulatory arbitrage perspective, they make more sense than their BTC equivalents, too,” he said.
Why Corporate Firms Are Increasing Their Ethereum Holdings?
The executive explained that corporate treasury investments in ETH are appealing due to the financial system’s inefficiencies, which are largely driven by regulatory barriers.
Additionally, ETH treasuries can benefit from staking rewards and leverage opportunities within decentralized finance (DeFi). These are currently unavailable through US Ethereum ETFs.
Kendrick also noted that the momentum has contributed to ETH’s latest price rally. BeInCrypto Markets data showed that the price appreciated 56.9% over the past month, and peaked at highs last seen many months ago.
“ETH has significantly outperformed BTC since ETH treasury companies took hold in early June, with the ETH-BTC cross up from an April low of 0.018 to 0.032 now. Buying by these companies, along with the best period for ETH ETFs on record, has certainly contributed to those gains. If the flows can continue, ETH may be able to break above the key USD 4,000 level (our current end-2025 forecast),” Kendrick disclosed to BeInCrypto.
