Standard Chartered analyst Geoff Kendrick suggests firms holding Ethereum in corporate treasuries may outperform spot ETFs, citing equivalent ETH accumulation, favorable NAV multiples, and staking rewards amidst shifting market dynamics.
Corporate buyers and spot ETFs have acquired identical portions of ETH’s circulating supply since early June, each accumulating 1.6% over the two-month period. Treasury purchases totaled 545,000 ETH ($1.6 billion) in the past month alone, with SharpLink Gaming contributing 50,000 ETH to raise its holdings above 255,000 ETH.
SharpLink Gaming’s current 1.0 NAV multiple – maintaining parity with fund reserves – provides direct ETH exposure and staking yields unavailable through ETFs. Kendrick notes this structure offers little incentive for discounts, stating there’s ‘no reason for NAV multiples to go below 1.0’.
The analysis follows turbulence in Ethereum spot ETFs, including $465 million in record single-day outflows earlier this month despite a partial recovery with $73 million net inflows later. Regulatory developments have reshaped ETF mechanics, as the SEC recently approved in-kind creation and redemption models enabling crypto ETFs to mirror traditional commodity fund operations.