ARK Invest and 21Shares have made alterations to their proposed spot Ether exchange-traded fund (ETF), removing plans for staking from the updated filing submitted on Friday, May 10. Previously, the filing included a clause stating that 21Shares intended to stake a portion of the fund's assets through third-party providers, anticipating receiving ETH rewards for staking. However, this section was removed in the latest filing, while broader comments on potential risks such as slashing penalties, temporary inaccessibility of funds during bonding and unbonding, and potential impacts on Ether's price were retained.

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas suggests that the removal of staking plans could be an attempt to refine the application in response to potential feedback from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Despite the absence of official comments from the SEC, this adjustment might be a proactive measure to address any concerns that could arise during the regulatory review process. Alternatively, Balchunas proposes that this change could serve as a strategic move to limit the information available for the SEC to base a potential rejection on.

In September 2023, ARK Invest and 21Shares initially submitted an application for a spot Ether ETF, aiming to offer direct exposure to Ether and trade on the Cboe BZX Exchange if approved. The exchange would utilize the CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate – New York Variant. The proposed ETF involves various entities, including 21Shares as the sponsor, Delaware Trust Company as the trustee, and Coinbase Custody Trust Company as the custodian of the underlying Ether assets, with ARK Investment Management serving as a sub-adviser.

The SEC has been postponing decisions on spot Ether ETF proposals, including the one from ARK Invest and 21Shares, as well as those from other entities like Invesco Galaxy, Grayscale, Franklin Templeton, VanEck, and BlackRock. The regulatory body has delayed making a decision on the Invesco Galaxy proposal and extended deadlines for other proposals. The SEC is expected to decide on VanEck's spot Ethereum application by May 23, followed by ARK and 21Shares’s application on May 24. Despite the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs on U.S. exchanges in January, the prospects for spot Ethereum ETF approvals have diminished in recent months, with Balchunas lowering his estimate of approval chances to 25% by late May, down from about 70%.