As the world's leading smart contract platform, Ethereum's total market capitalization surpassed $520 billion this morning, successfully surpassing payment giant Mastercard and streaming leader Netflix, opening the door to the top 25 global asset value rankings. This milestone not only highlights Ethereum's growing economic influence, but the deeper driving force behind it points to a significant 'green light' from U.S. regulators.
As Ethereum's market capitalization skyrocketed, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a highly anticipated new guideline clarifying that 'specific liquid staking activities' do not constitute securities issuance. This seemingly technical regulatory statement has been widely interpreted by the market as the SEC actively paving the way for the upcoming 'inclusion of Ethereum spot ETF staking' function. The convergence of these two major events signifies that Ethereum is transforming from a purely crypto asset into a globally recognized macro asset that is deeply integrated into the mainstream financial system.
The value of Ethereum
According to the latest market data, Ethereum's price surged strongly at the beginning of August, once breaking through $4,300, pushing its total market capitalization to a historical high of nearly $520 billion. This figure firmly places it at the 25th position among all tradable assets globally (including listed companies, precious metals, etc.).
This strong value reassessment is not unwarranted, as there are three key drivers behind it:
Continuous influx of institutional funds: Just at the beginning of August, 'whale' addresses accumulated Ethereum worth $667 million. The increase in enterprise-level Ethereum treasury holdings reached 127% in July. This indicates that large institutions are accelerating their inclusion of Ethereum in their long-term strategic asset allocation.
Strong on-chain fundamentals: The activity level of the Ethereum network continues to strengthen, with daily transaction volume stabilizing at over 1.74 million, and the number of active addresses exceeding 680,000. This reflects that decentralized finance (DeFi), NFTs, and other application ecosystems built on Ethereum are in a flourishing stage, thus creating real demand for the native token ETH.
Increasing clarity in the regulatory environment: The positive attitude of U.S. regulatory agencies has greatly alleviated market uncertainty, providing institutional investors with a clearer compliance path, thereby boosting market confidence.
As one market researcher put it: "This is no longer a question of whether to accept blockchain, but rather how to reposition under the new rules." The capital market is rapidly entering a new phase of 'crypto + traditional' co-construction, with Ethereum at the center of this storm of integration.
Key green light from the SEC
For a long time, the SEC's regulatory stance on crypto assets has loomed over the industry like the 'Sword of Damocles.' Among these, whether 'staking' constitutes securities issuance has been a focal point of contention. However, with the push from the Trump administration's 'Project Crypto' regulatory reform plan, the SEC released a game-changing statement. This statement clearly indicates that 'liquid staking' activities conducted through blockchain protocols, under certain circumstances, do not necessarily constitute the issuance or sale of securities as defined by the Securities Act of 1933.
The SEC explained that if a liquid staking protocol or service provider's role is merely to perform technical and administrative functions, helping users participate in staking and issuing 'liquid staking tokens' (LST) representing ownership of their staked assets, without involving conditions that require users to rely on the efforts of others to generate returns, then such activities would not trigger the 'Howey Test' to determine whether it is a security.
In simple terms, this is akin to users depositing assets with an agent and receiving a receipt (i.e., LST), which essentially serves as proof of ownership rather than purchasing an investment contract. SEC Commissioner and prominent cryptocurrency supporter Hester Peirce commented, "This is just a modern version of depositing assets with an agent and obtaining a receipt, nothing complicated."
Ethereum ETF Staking
Why is the SEC's statement seen by the market as paving the way for 'Ethereum ETF inclusion of staking'? 'Liquid staking' is one of the most important sectors in the current crypto industry, with a total value locked (TVL) approaching $67 billion, of which the Ethereum ecosystem accounts for as much as $51 billion. It allows users to stake ETH to earn yields while obtaining freely tradable LSTs (such as Lido's stETH), thus solving the liquidity lock-up problem caused by traditional staking.
For the soon-to-be-launched Ethereum spot ETF, whether it can participate in staking and distribute returns to ETF holders is key to attracting investors. If the ETF can participate in staking, it will not just be a price exposure tool but will transform into a 'yield-generating asset' capable of producing continuous cash flow, which holds tremendous appeal for traditional investors.
However, the SEC's previous ambiguous attitude towards staking has always been a major obstacle for ETF issuers to easily incorporate staking into product design. Now, the SEC's clarification effectively provides a compliant path for ETF issuers.
Nate Geraci, president of Nova Dius Wealth, analyzed: "This is likely the last hurdle for the SEC to approve staking in the Ethereum spot ETF. ETF issuers can manage fund liquidity through liquid staking tokens (LST), which is precisely the concern that previously worried the SEC." Mara Schmiedt, CEO of Alluvial, also stated that this clarification will allow institutions to integrate LST into their products more confidently, further developing secondary markets and creating new sources of revenue.
The beginning of a new era
Ethereum's entry into the top 25 global assets and the SEC's green light for liquid staking happening simultaneously is no coincidence. It marks the recognition of Ethereum's value by the highest levels of the global capital market; meanwhile, U.S. regulatory agencies are also pragmatically and clearly building bridges for this emerging asset class to integrate into the mainstream financial system.
Despite some opposing voices within the SEC, such as Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw, who believes this move could 'make things more ambiguous', the market's positive reaction speaks volumes. An Ethereum ETF that allows staking and generates yield will have far greater potential than the current Bitcoin spot ETF. This will not only bring billions of dollars in potential buying power for Ethereum but will also fundamentally change the landscape of global asset management. Ethereum's journey may just be beginning.
