161,000 Idle ETH May Soon Be Staked: What Grayscale Just Changed

Some 161,000 ETH sit idle in Grayscale’s $1.6 billion Ethereum Staking Mini ETF (ticker ETH). A new trust agreement aims to shrink that pile toward zero. The rewrite makes staking the default for nearly every coin the fund holds.

It also guarantees shareholders regular cash payouts, and it landed just before a key tax deadline. Staking Becomes the Default, Not the Target Grayscale signed the new trust agreement on August 6, according to an SEC filing. It was cutting things close.

An Internal Revenue Service (IRS) deadline to make such changes expired August 10, four days later. The IRS rules, published last November, let crypto funds stake without triggering fund-level tax. There is one big string attached.

Rewards must flow out to shareholders at least quarterly. Grayscale’s rewrite delivers that and more. Rewards will convert to cash, with monthly payments planned.