Crypto glossary
Staking ETF
A staking ETF is an exchange-traded fund that stakes part of its proof-of-stake tokens with validators and passes the rewards, net of fees, to shareholders.
Proof-of-stake networks such as Ethereum and Solana pay rewards to holders who lock tokens to secure the chain. A staking ETF holds those tokens through a custodian, delegates a share to validators run by itself or by providers, and adds the rewards to the fund's value or distributes them. In Europe, staking ETPs have existed for years; in the US the first funds with staking reached the market in 2025, after the SEC relaxed its stance.
For investors, the product closes the gap between holding the token directly, which earns yield, and holding a plain ETF, which does not. It also brings staked supply into regulated portfolios.
Funds must keep enough unstaked tokens to meet redemptions, because unstaking queues can take days or weeks, so the yield is lower than solo staking. Slashing, validator outages and custody concentration are added risks, fees take a cut, and the tax treatment of rewards may differ from the plain ETF.
Example
An ether ETF stakes 70% of its holdings with three institutional validators and reports a net staking yield of around 2% a year added to its NAV.
Related terms
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