BlackRock hires GSR research analyst who predicted 75% chance of spot ether ETF approval by May

Companies • March 11, 2024, 11:59AM EDT

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Quick Take

BlackRock hired GSR’s Matt Kunke as a director and product strategist focused on
Prior to GSR, Kunke worked at JPMorgan and Credit Suisse.

Investment firm BlackRock hired former GSR research analyst Matt Kunke as a director and product strategist focused on iShares digital assets ETFs.

At GSR, Kunke predicted in January that Ethereum ETH +3.26% ETFs had a 75% chance of approval by May. "This optimistic outlook is grounded in Grayscale's Court of Appeals victory and the subsequent approval of Ethereum Futures ETF, collectively suggesting that the approval of a spot Ethereum ETF is only a matter of time," he said at the time.

Before GSR, Kunke led the crypto research vertical at Global X ETFs and was a portfolio manager on the Blockchain & Bitcoin Strategy ETF. Before that, he worked at JPMorgan and Credit Suisse.

BlackRock has been leading the charge in crypto ETFs, starting with Bitcoin. Its IBIT bitcoin ETF has sucked in $12.7 billion of bitcoin since its January launch. It now has a 47% market share in spot bitcoin ETF trading volumes.

As for Ethereum, BlackRock has applied to launch a spot Ethereum ETF, but the SEC has not yet approved them. Pundits are now much less optimistic about whether they will be approved by May.

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