BlackRock, Nasdaq make the push for options on spot Ethereum ETF

Exchange Nasdaq and the world's largest asset manager BlackRock plan to list and trade options for its spot Ethereum exchange-traded fund.

In a filing posted Tuesday to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's site, BlackRock and Nasdaq ISE, LLC proposed a rule change to list and trade options on the iShares Ethereum Trust (ticker ETHA).

"The Exchange believes that offering options on the Trust will benefit investors by providing them with an additional, relatively lower cost investing tool to gain exposure to spot ether as well as a hedging vehicle to meet their investment needs in connection with ether products and positions," the filing read. 

BlackRock's ETF was approved along with eight others in May and began trading last month. 

Comments on the proposal are due in 21 days. A final decision on the proposal from the SEC will likely happen in early April 2025, said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart in a post on X on Tuesday. 

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Update: Aug. 6, 8:55 p.m. UTC to include Seyffart's post