Ether Capital Turns Four

Ether Capital – 4 min read
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Today marks Ether Capital’s fourth anniversary as a public company, something we are extremely proud of.

In 2018, we made our debut as the first Canadian company to give investors direct exposure to Ethereum. Still today, we remain the leading access point to Ethereum and Web3 infrastructure and are one of the largest holders of ether (ETH) in the capital markets.

Over the past few years, we’ve seen billions of dollars in capital pour into the sector, giving rise to new crypto-related businesses and verticals. While there’s lots to look forward to in the months ahead, we wanted to take this opportunity to reflect on our accomplishments over the past four years and what sets Ether Capital apart from others in the space.

Ethereum reshaping our financial landscape

From day one, we have always believed that Ethereum is a once-in-a-generation asset that will disrupt the world of finance. Despite most of the attention being focused on Bitcoin when we started the company, we did not stray from our conviction that Ethereum would become a global clearing house and settlement layer for a wide-range of activities. Its programmable base layer and open-source infrastructure is what led to the fascinating discovery of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), decentralized finance (DeFi) and the metaverse that captured mainstream attention in 2021. Our investment thesis has always revolved around projects, technologies, protocols and businesses that leverage the Ethereum ecosystem. This is why we often tip our hat to the development community building the key infrastructure that’s instrumental to the industry’s success. This will be the plumbing and foundation for the next generation of the internet known as Web3.

Unique structure

Ether Capital is made up of leading venture capitalists, crypto natives and traditional finance executives who have insight into the latest developments in the space, and the wherewithal to introduce this cutting-edge innovation to traditional investors. Different from closed funds or ETFs, our corporate structure allows us to participate in crypto-related activities like staking, while having the knowledge to identify critical infrastructure that will help fuel mainstream adoption. Earlier this year, we made two strategic management hires and brought on Jillian Friedman as our Chief Operating Officer and Ian McPherson as our new President & Chief Financial Officer. In addition to the strong team we already had in place, both Jillian and Ian will give us the firepower we need to grow our business and seek out new opportunities in the fast-growing industry.

Staking pioneers

In December 2021, we became the first public company in the world to stake a significant amount of ether (10,240 ETH) to generate meaningful revenue. In February 2022, we doubled our initial investment and staked an additional 10,240 ETH at a yield calculated at ~5%. In less than four months, we have surpassed $1 million in staking rewards simply by locking up our assets to validate the network in an eco-friendly way. It’s widely anticipated that more institutional investors will stake their assets in 2022 either before or after the Merge, and Ether Capital is proud to be leading the way on this front.

Shaping Canadian regulation

As a fully-regulated company that operates in the space, we understand the industry’s unique complexities and what it takes to properly regulate the sector. Working alongside policymakers, we were one of the first organizations to create direct access points for Canadian investors to get exposure to digital assets. In 2021, we successfully launched the world’s first spot Bitcoin ETF alongside Purpose Investments that amassed $1 billion a few weeks after it began trading, making it one of the fastest-growing ETFs of all time. Shortly after BTCC’s launch, we assisted Purpose with its Ether ETF, proving traditional investors can get direct exposure to ether without having to navigate the space in a crypto-native way. We also recently became founding members of the Canadian Web3 Council — a new industry association featuring Canada’s top cryptocurrency and Web3 companies — that’s dedicated to helping government officials develop a national strategy for digital assets. While there are still many challenges ahead, we’re optimistic Ether Capital’s recognition in the space and productive relationship with regulators will afford us a seat at the table to help shape meaningful policies that guide the industry for generations to come.

The road ahead

Bootstrapping a business takes guts and our unwavering commitment to Ethereum has allowed us to become trailblazers in an industry we are so passionate about. But our work is far from over and we have much to do in the coming months as we focus on our next phase of growth. For now, we want to take this opportunity to thank our shareholders, our board, supporters and everyone who believed in us along the way. Remember, it’s the network effect (aka you) which defines Ethereum’s success.

#WAGMI

The original version of this article was published on Medium: https://medium.com/ether-capital-blog/ether-capital-turns-four-13215c91e57c

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