First State Pension Fund Buys Ethereum (ETH) ETF

The State of Michigan Retirement System has purchased 460,000 shares of  Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE) for roughly $10 million, according to a recent regulatory filing. 

This comes after it bought $6.6 million worth of shares of the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin in late July. 

In addition to ETHE shares, the pension fund also purchased 460,000 shares of Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust (ETH), a low-fee spin-off of the main fund. Its total exposure to ETH ETFs has amounted to roughly $11.2 million.

Notably, the State of Michigan Retirement System is the first state pension fund to gain exposure to Ethereum ETFs. 

A "pretty big win" for Ether 

Eric Balchunas, Bloomberg's leading ETF expert, has already commented on the pension fund's most recent crypto investment, arguing that it represents a "pretty big win" for Ethereum (ETH). 

The analyst has taken note of the fact that the pension fund has put more money in Ether compared to Bitcoin despite the fact that the former is "in the gutter." 

Ethereum ETFs, which were launched to much fanfare in July, ended up being a major flop. Their cumulative outflows have now approached half a billion dollars. In sharp contrast to this disastrous performance, Bitcoin ETFs have surpassed $24 billion in total inflows. 

As reported by U.Today, Robert Mitchnick, BlackRock's head of digital assets, opined that potential investors are confused by Ethereum's investment narrative. 

ETF analyst Nate Geraci also echoed this point in his recent social media post, arguing that the concept of Ethereum is more complicated for investors, which is why there is a need for more advisor education.