Morgan Stanley Proposes 0.14% Fee for Spot Ethereum and Solana ETFs with 95% Staking Pass-Through
MS•Morgan Stanley filed amended S-1 statements for planned spot Ethereum and Solana ETFs, proposing a 0.14% annual sponsor fee—the lowest in the US—and absorbing most operating expenses. Each fund will stake tokens via Figment, Galaxy Infrastructure and Coinbase Canada, returning 95% of staking rewards to shareholders.
1. Fee Structure and Registration
Morgan Stanley submitted amended S-1 registration statements on June 18 for two spot crypto ETFs—MSSE for Ethereum and MSOL for Solana—proposing a 0.14% annual sponsor fee, which accrues daily on net asset value and is paid monthly in cash. The firm will absorb most ordinary operating expenses within that fee rather than layering additional charges.
2. Staking Mechanics and Reward Pass-Through
Each ETF will stake a portion of its ETH or SOL holdings through Figment, Galaxy Infrastructure LLC and Coinbase Canada. Of all staking rewards generated, 95% will flow directly back into the trust to boost net asset value, while only 5% goes to the staking service providers, with Morgan Stanley collecting no extra cut beyond its management fee.
3. Market Impact and Competitor Benchmarking
Existing US spot Ethereum ETF proposals from major issuers carry fees between 0.20% and 0.30%, and the closest Solana ETF filing sits at 0.19%. Morgan Stanley’s 0.14% fee undercuts these benchmarks by a wide margin, potentially reshaping the ongoing crypto ETF fee war and pressuring rivals to cut fees to compete.
