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BlackRock’s Staked Ethereum ETF Sees Over $43M in Inflows on Day One

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BlackRock’s Staked Ethereum ETF Sees Over $43M in Inflows on Day One

Day-one trading volume for ETHB on Nasdaq reached over $16.5 million.

BlackRock’s iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHB) saw a strong debut on the Nasdaq on Thursday, March 12, drawing $43.48 million in net inflows and recording $16.54 million in trading volume on its first day, according to data from SoSoValue.

The only U.S. spot ETH ETF to outperform ETHB in net inflows on the day was Fidelity’s FETH, which pulled in just over $52 million, and saw $83.91 million in trading volume yesterday.

BlackRock’s spot-only Ethereum ETF, ETHA, saw $18.68 million in net inflows on the same day.

Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart called the debut “very, very solid for a day 1 ETF launch” in an X post on Thursday.

As The Defiant reported yesterday, ETHB is BlackRock’s third crypto ETF and its first to incorporate staking, combining spot ETH exposure with monthly staking income. Coinbase Prime handles ETH custody, per the firm’s press release.

The product carries a 0.25% sponsor fee, waived down to 0.12% for the first year on up to $2.5 billion in assets.

According to the fund’s prospectus as of March 11, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), BlackRock intends to stake between 70% and 95% of the trust’s ETH holdings “under normal market circumstances.”

BlackRock also said in its prospectus that it will stake ETH either via its ETH custodian, aka Coinbase, with one or more staking services providers, which could be Coinbase affiliates, or “other approved third-party validators.”

As The Defiant previously reported, ETHB is not the first staked ETH product in the U.S., but BlackRock’s market dominance across both Ethereum and Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. makes ETHB’s entry a significant moment for the staked ETH market.

The launch follows key regulatory milestones that cleared the path for yield-bearing crypto ETFs. An SEC division issued staff guidance last May stating that staking is not a securities transaction — a staff-level position, not a formal rule — and the SEC formally acknowledged BlackRock’s staking filing last July.

The spot price of ETH rallied about 6% over the past 24 hours, reaching almost $2,200. ETH is now up on the weekly and monthly timeframes, 7% and 12% respectively.

24-hour ETH price chart. Source: CoinGecko

This article was written with the assistance of AI workflows. All our stories are curated, edited and fact-checked by a human.

BTC nears one-month high of $74,000

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BTC nears one-month high of $74,000

Bitcoin BTC$71,859.13 is adding to overnight gains in early U.S. trading on Friday, continuing to show strong relative price action after many months of underperformance to assets like stocks and precious metals.

Trading at $73,800, bitcoin is higher by nearly 5% over the past 24 hours, with most of those gains coming after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday evening said the Trump administration is taking concrete steps to try and cap surging oil prices.

Bitcoin is now higher by about 11% since the Iran war broke out, outperforming broad U.S. stock indices and gold, both of which have lost ground since the bombs began dropping about two weeks ago.

WTI oil on Friday is trading at $94.50 per barrel, down from a high of nearly $98 on Thursday. U.S. stocks are posting gains of about 0.5%.

Oil raises stagflationary risk

The recent spike in oil prices is putting direct pressure on household budgets and, if sustained, could weaken consumer spending and slow economic growth, according to Olu Sonola, head of US economics at Fitch Ratings.

“Yes, the broader economy is still expected to grow at trend, but that forecast increasingly looks fragile as downside risks accumulate. … The Fed can shrug off pockets of weakening growth, but resurgent inflation severely limits its room to maneuver, leaving policy potentially stranded for months,” he wrote in a note.

Relief bounce

After a period of some of the worst sentiment in bitcoin’s history, it’s perhaps not too surprising that there’s been some modest gains of late.

Funding positioning of perpetual futures traders has been negative for the longest period since late 2022, K33 Research analyst Vetle Lunde noted. This means traders who are shorting bitcoin are paying longs to keep their trades open, resulting in a negative funding rate. Late 2022, of course, coincided with the aftermath of the FTX crash when BTC traded around $16,000 versus $69,000 one year earlier.

The 30-day average funding rate has now been negative for 14 consecutive days, the longest since December 2022, Lunde pointed out. These negative streaks coincided with local price bottoms over the past seven years, he added.

In the meantime, bitcoin open interest in perpetual and dated futures has risen 9% over the past 24 hours to around 700,000 BTC, the highest level since Feb. 6. Add it all up, and that creates the conditions for a short squeeze.

Bitcoin and periods with negative 30-day average perpetual funding rates (K33 Research)
Friday gain

The day isn’t over yet, but this would be the first Friday gain since the Middle East conflict began on Feb. 27. That might suggest a less volatile weekend for crypto, which has gotten in the habit of declining on Saturdays and Sundays in recent weeks.

March is also shaping up to be a turning point for bitcoin. The asset is up about 8% so far this month. Again, it’s early, but a March advance would break BTC’s five-month losing streak.

PayQuicker Launches 1099 Solution Powered by Avalara

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PayQuicker Launches 1099 Solution Powered by Avalara

WHY THIS MATTERS

Tax reporting obligations—particularly around 1099 forms in the United States—can create significant administrative complexity for businesses managing large networks of contractors, vendors and payees. As regulatory requirements tighten and reporting thresholds evolve, companies are increasingly turning to automated compliance tools to reduce manual work and minimize the risk of penalties. PayQuicker’s new 1099 reporting solution aims to address these challenges by enabling businesses to collect and validate tax information throughout the year rather than rushing to gather accurate data during the filing season.

PayQuicker, a global payouts and financial technology company, today announced the launch of its new 1099 tax reporting solution, powered by Avalara, the agentic tax and compliance leader. The new offering helps businesses simplify and automate 1099 reporting while reducing compliance risk and administrative burden.

As regulatory requirements around tax reporting continue to grow in complexity, PayQuicker’s 1099 solution enables businesses to collect W-9 and other W-series forms throughout the year – long before filing season arrives – helping ensure accurate payee data at all times. The solution also uses real-time Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) matching to validate information at the point of collection, reducing costly backup withholding notices, penalties, and corrections later.

By leveraging Avalara’s proven tax compliance technology, the solution delivers scalable, secure, and compliant tax reporting for companies managing large volumes of payees. Businesses can generate, file, and distribute 1099 forms accurately and efficiently, supported by automated federal and state filing, electronic delivery, and ongoing regulatory updates.

“Businesses need reliable, automated solutions to stay compliant without slowing down operations,” said Joe Bertalli, CFO at PayQuicker. “By partnering with Avalara, we’re able to provide our customers with a robust 1099 solution that reduces complexity, increases accuracy, and gives them confidence in their compliance processes.”

Avalara’s technology supports federal and state filing requirements, electronic and recipient delivery, and ongoing regulatory updates – helping to ensure that PayQuicker customers remain compliant as tax rules evolve.

“PayQuicker is focused on making complex financial workflows easier for businesses,” said Queenie Lee, General Manager-1099 Reporting at Avalara. “We’re excited to power their 1099 solution with Avalara’s compliance expertise, enabling customers to automate reporting and reduce risk while staying focused on growth.”

FF NEWS TAKE
 Automation is rapidly becoming the backbone of tax and compliance operations for modern financial platforms.

Partnerships like PayQuicker’s collaboration with Avalara highlight how fintech providers are embedding compliance capabilities directly into payment and payout infrastructure. As regulatory complexity continues to increase, businesses will increasingly rely on integrated solutions that automate reporting, validate data in real time and ensure compliance without slowing down operational growth.

Historically Accurate Macro Signal Hints at a Bitcoin Price Bottom

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Historically Accurate Macro Signal Hints at a Bitcoin Price Bottom

Bitcoin (BTC) may approach a market bottom, with a macro model tied to the US and China’s benchmark 10-year bond yields hinting at a potential rally toward $100,000 in the months ahead.

Key takeaways:

  • Bitcoin whales show signs of accumulation that were seen near the 2023 market low.

  • BTC holds key long-term support while “oversold,” increasing the chance of a recovery.

History rhymes? BTC flashes ‘precise’ bullish cross

The model, shared by analyst AO, applies a Stochastic RSI oscillator to the product of US10Y and CN10Y.

When overlaid with Bitcoin’s historical price action, the indicator shows that bullish crossovers from oversold levels have historically appeared near major BTC market bottoms.

BTC/USD and US10Y*CN10Y Stoch RSI weekly performance chart. Source: TradingView/AO

For instance, in 2013, the crossover preceded a 8,700% surge in Bitcoin prices. Similar signals appeared before the 2017 bull run (+1,900%), the 2020–2021 cycle (+600%), and the 2023 rebound (+350%+).

In March, the Stoch RSI flashed another “extremely precise” bullish crossover, according to analyst Crypto Rand, who said the signal suggests Bitcoin is “going way higher.”

Whale behavior backs case for a Bitcoin bottom

Onchain data tracking Bitcoin whales support the macro outlook discussed above.

For instance, Bitcoin wallets holding between 1,000 BTC and 10,000 BTC resumed accumulation during the recent price decline, resembling the behavior seen near earlier market bottoms.

Bitcoin total balance and balance change of large holders (1K–10K BTC balance). Source: CryptoQuant

For instance, the same cohort began buying in early 2023 near the price lows before Bitcoin went on to rally more than 350%.

Related: STRC may help Strategy reach 1M Bitcoin milestone before BlackRock

Similar accumulation phases by large holders also appeared before the 2017 and 2020 bull runs. This setup may improve Bitcoin’s odds of bottoming out earlier than some analysts predict.

BTC technicals hint at rebound toward $100,000

Bitcoin’s weekly chart is also showing early signs of a potential rebound.

Over the past month, bears failed to push BTC decisively below its 100-week simple moving average (100-week SMA, the blue line), a level that has often marked the price bottom in past cycles.

BTC/USD weekly price chart. Source: TradingView

Following the March 2020 test, Bitcoin rebounded by more than 1,000% from that support line, while a similar bounce in 2019 preceded gains of over 300%.

Additionally, BTC’s relative strength index (RSI) has slipped into oversold territory below 30, suggesting that the price has fallen too far, too fast, increasing the chances of a recovery.

A decisive rebound from the 200-week SMA could send the BTC price toward $100,000 by August, where the 50-week SMA and 1.618 Fibonacci level converge.

Conversely, some analysts warned about a potential bull trap if Bitcoin fails to rise above the $78,000 resistance level, which is key for a bullish trend reversal.

Below the spot price, the areas of interest include the 200-week exponential moving average at $68,300 and the $60,000-65,500 support zone.