ETHE Dossier: Grayscale Ethereum Trust ETF SEC CIK, Expense Ratio, Custodian & Tax Audit
Highest TER (2.50% = $250/yr per $10k) among US Spot Ethereum ETFs; active institutional options market. Issued by Grayscale Investments (Grayscale Investments Sponsors, LLC), ETHE launched on 2024-07-23 on NYSE Arca under SEC CIK 0001725210.
ETHE charges an ongoing contractual expense ratio of 2.50% ($250.00 per year per $10,000 invested). Cold-storage custody is managed by Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC with cash administration by The Bank of New York Mellon (BNY Mellon). As a 1933 Act Grantor Trust, ETHE issues Form 1099-B + WHFIT statements (no K-1) and is subject to the 30-day IRC § 1091 Wash Sale Rule.
ETHE (2.50%) 1 / 3 / 5 / 10-Year Compound Expense Drag Calculator
Technical & Regulatory Specification Sheet: ETHE
| Ticker & Exchange | NYSE Arca: ETHE |
| Full Legal Trust Name | Grayscale Ethereum Trust ETF |
| Sponsor / Issuer | Grayscale Investments (Grayscale Investments Sponsors, LLC) |
| SEC Central Index Key (CIK) | 0001725210 (Official SEC EDGAR Browse) |
| Inception Date | 2024-07-23 |
| Contractual Expense Ratio (TER) | 2.50% ($250.00/yr per $10,000) |
| Fee Waiver History | 2.50% contractual sponsor fee (legacy trust launched Dec 14, 2017; converted to NYSE Arca Spot ETF on July 23, 2024). |
| Digital Asset Custodian | Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC |
| Cash Custodian & Admin | The Bank of New York Mellon (BNY Mellon) |
| Reference Benchmark Index | CoinDesk Ether Price Index (ETX) |
| Creation / Redemption | Cash & Authorized Participant creation/redemption |
| Options Trading | Available — NYSE American / Cboe Options |
| Tax Structure & IRS Forms | Grantor Trust (1933 Securities Act) — Issues Form 1099-B + Annual WHFIT (Widely Held Fixed Investment Trust) Tax Information Statement (No Schedule K-1) |
| IRC § 1091 Wash Sale Rule | Subject to IRC § 1091 Wash Sale Rule (regulated exchange-traded security; repurchasing identical or substantially identical ETF shares within 30 days before/after a loss sale disallows the loss deduction) |
| IRA / 401(k) / HSA Eligibility | Eligible for Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP/SIMPLE IRA, Solo 401(k), BrokerageLink 401(k), HSA, and standard taxable brokerage accounts at Fidelity, Charles Schwab, Interactive Brokers, Robinhood, E*TRADE, and Merrill (Vanguard continues to restrict spot crypto ETP purchases on its brokerage platform). |
| In-Fund Staking | No (SEC-approved S-1 filings initially excluded staking; issuer amendments under review in 2025/2026) |
| Official Product Page | https://www.grayscale.com/crypto-products/grayscale-ethereum-trust |
Latest Official SEC EDGAR Filings for ETHE (CIK 0001725210)
| SEC Form | Filing Date | Accession Number | Direct SEC EDGAR Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| S-1 / 10-Q | 2026-10-30 | CIK 0001725210 | Browse SEC EDGAR CIK → |
ETHE vs. Peer US Spot ETH ETFs Expense Ratio Chart
- 01Dossier Scope & Canonical URI
/etfs/ethe/— ETHE ETF Dossier- 02Primary US Regulatory Authorities
- U.S. SEC EDGAR · IRS Chief Counsel · FinCEN · NYDFS · CA DFPI
- 03Key Statutory Citations
- 1933 Act Grantor Trust (WHFIT) · IRC §§ 1091, 1014, 408, 165(c)(2) · RUFADAA
- 04Live On-Chain Reference Telemetry
- BTC: $81,732.46 · ETH: $2,367.00 · Mempool Fast: 4 sat/vB
- 05Hardware & Multisig Benchmark
- CC EAL6+ Secure Element · Air-Gapped QR/MicroSD PSBT · 2-of-3 Quorum
- 06Verification & Audit Timestamp
- Independently verified against primary dockets on 2026-10-30
How Do $1,000, $10,000 & $100,000 Capital Allocations Scale Under ETHE ETF Dossier?
Institutional portfolio construction requires evaluating ETHE ETF Dossier across concrete dollar thresholds rather than abstract percentages. On a starter allocation of $1,000, fixed operational expenses—such as a $79–$239.99 air-gapped hardware signer (Trezor Safe 3 or Coldcard Q) or a $250 annual collaborative multisig IRA fee—represent a higher initial percentage of principal, making zero-commission Spot ETFs like Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust (BTC, 0.15% TER = $1.50/yr per $1,000) or BlackRock IBIT (0.25% TER = $2.50/yr per $1,000) highly efficient entry vehicles. At the $10,000 portfolio tier, a 0.25% annual ETF expense ratio costs $25/yr ($382 compounded over 10 years at 10% CAGR), whereas a one-time $169 Trezor Safe 5 or $167.99 Coldcard Mk4 breaks even in Year 3 and charges $0.00/yr thereafter. At the $100,000 to $500,000+ institutional and family-office tier, compounding ETF sponsor drag reaches $3,820 to $19,100+ over a decade—making direct 2-of-3 multi-vendor hardware multisig or a flat-fee Unchained 2-of-3 IRA mathematically superior while eliminating single-custodian concentration at Coinbase Custody Trust.
Furthermore, on-chain network execution costs must be calibrated against current Bitcoin mempool conditions (currently 4 sat/vB at a reference price of $81,732.46/BTC). A single-signature Native SegWit (P2WPKH, BIP-84) spend of 141 virtual bytes costs approximately $0.46, a Taproot (P2TR, BIP-86) spend of 111 vBytes costs $0.36, and a 2-of-3 collaborative multisig spend of 205 vBytes costs $0.67. Proactive UTXO consolidation during low-fee windows ensures your long-term cold storage remains liquid even if network demand surges above 100 sat/vB.
What Are the SEC, IRS Tax (IRC §§ 1091, 1014, 408, 165) & RUFADAA Estate Rules for ETHE ETF Dossier?
Every compliance decision surrounding ETHE ETF Dossier intersects four pillars of United States federal and state law verified as of 2026-10-30:
- SEC 1933 Act Grantor Trust & WHFIT Tax Reporting: All 20 US Spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs operate as Grantor Trusts under
Treas. Reg. § 1.671-5, issuing standard brokerageForm 1099-Band WHFIT statements rather than partnership Schedule K-1s. However, as registered securities, Spot ETFs are strictly subject to the 30-dayIRC § 1091Wash Sale Rule, whereas direct spot crypto held in self-custody is taxed as property underIRS Notice 2014-21with mandatory per-wallet cost-basis lot tracking underRev. Proc. 2024-28. - Retirement Account Qualification (IRC § 408 & McNulty v. Commissioner): Under McNulty v. Commissioner (157 T.C. No. 10), IRA owners cannot hold single-signature private keys or physical coins unsupervised at home via a Checkbook LLC without triggering a taxable distribution. Compliant retirement key control requires a regulated collaborative 2-of-3 multisig vault (Unchained IRA or Choice by Kingdom Trust) where a qualified custodian files
Form 5498andForm 1099-R. - Estate Succession (RUFADAA & IRC § 1014 Step-Up in Basis): Across 47+ US states, the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA) governs fiduciary access. Titling Spot ETFs or self-custody multisig vaults inside a Revocable Living Trust (RLT) bypasses public probate court while preserving the 100% tax-free date-of-death cost-basis reset under IRC § 1014(a) and automatic long-term status under
IRC § 1223(9). - Federal Fraud Defense & IRS CCA 202511015 Theft Loss Relief: Cross-checking every domain and counterparty against our 1,049-Record Federal Scam Radar (CA DFPI, SEC PAUSE, CFTC RED, OFAC SDN) prevents Pig Butchering and Permit2 drainer losses. When profit-motivated investment fraud occurs, victims must file an emergency FBI IC3 Recovery Asset Team (RAT) freeze request within 24–72 hours and evaluate an investment theft loss deduction under
IRS CCA 202511015andIRC § 165(c)(2)on Form 4684 Section B.
Institutional Scenario & Compliance Matrix: ETHE ETF Dossier (2026 Audit)
| Allocation Scenario & Investor Tier | Recommended Vehicle / Architecture | Annual Custody / Tax Drag | Primary Statutory & Security Control |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Tax-Free Brokerage Roth IRA ($5k–$100k) | BTC Mini (0.15%) / IBIT (0.25%) / FBTC (0.25%) | 0.15% – 0.25% TER ($0 Trade Fee) | 1933 Act Grantor Trust; 0% LTCG at age 59½+ under IRC § 408A |
| 2. Sovereign Cold Storage ($25k–$250k) | Coldcard Q or Trezor Safe 5 + 316 Steel Plate | $0.00 / yr ($79–$240 1x CapEx) | CC EAL6+ / Dual-SE isolation; Property under Notice 2014-21; Rev. Proc. 2024-28 |
| 3. Multi-Vendor 2-of-3 Quorum ($100k–$5M+) | Sparrow / Unchained / Nunchuk | $0 – $250 / yr Flat | Eliminates single-vendor hardware & seed risk; BIP-380 Output Descriptor backup |
| 4. Hold-Your-Own-Keys Retirement Rollover | Unchained IRA / Choice by Kingdom Trust | $250 / yr + 0.25%–1.00% Trade | Full McNulty v. Commissioner (157 T.C. 10) compliance + IRS Form 5498 |
| 5. Generational Estate Trust Succession | Revocable Living Trust + Miniscript Timelock | 100% Tax-Free Basis Reset | Bypasses public probate; full IRC § 1014(a) date-of-death FMV step-up |
| 6. Active Web3 / Operational Threat Defense | 2-Tier Cold/Hot Split + YubiKey FIDO2 | $0 Permit2 Cold Exposure | Zero dApp approvals on Tier-1 vault; 1,049-Record Scam Radar verification |
Frequently Asked Questions (SEC, IRS & Custody Engineering)
ETHE charges a contractual expense ratio of 2.50% ($250.00 per year per $10,000 invested) and is registered with the U.S. SEC under Central Index Key (CIK) 0001725210.
The underlying ETH for ETHE is held in institutional cold storage by Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC, with cash administration handled by The Bank of New York Mellon (BNY Mellon).
ETHE is a 1933 Act Grantor Trust (WHFIT). It does NOT issue a Schedule K-1; investors receive standard Form 1099-B from their brokerage plus an annual WHFIT tax information statement.
For ETHE ETF Dossier, investors must compare compounding percentage-based expense ratios (0.15% to 0.25% per year in US Spot ETFs, which equals $382 per $10,000 or $3,820 per $100,000 over 10 years at 10% CAGR) against one-time hardware self-custody CapEx ($79–$249 with $0/yr ongoing management fee) or flat-fee 2-of-3 multisig retirement vaults.
SEC-registered Spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs (such as IBIT, FBTC, BTC Mini, and ETHA) and public crypto equities (MSTR, COIN) are securities strictly governed by the 30-day IRC § 1091 Wash Sale Rule. Direct spot cryptocurrency held in self-custody is treated as property under IRS Notice 2014-21 and requires wallet-by-wallet cost-basis lot accounting under Rev. Proc. 2024-28.
Receive verified institutional dispatches covering SEC S-1/19b-4 fee amendments, IRS Form 1099-DA / 5498 rulings, and CA DFPI / SEC PAUSE enforcement dockets.