Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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Crypto ETFs

ETHE vs MSSE: Tracking, Returns & Fees

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Over the three months to Oct 28, 2026, ETHE finished 0.33 of a percentage point behind Ether and MSSE 0.09 ahead.

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Net assets: $1.2bn on Jun 30, 2026 for Grayscale Ethereum Staking ETF, beside Morgan Stanley Ethereum Trust.

At a glance
−41.9%
ETHE returned, 1 year
+23.6%
MSSE returned, since launch, Jul 28, 2026
−0.6 pts
ETHE against Ether, in percentage points
+0.2 pts
MSSE against Ether, in percentage points
ETHE · 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 Within a point of Ether
Within a point of EtherETHE over 1 year: fund −41.89%, Ether −41.34%, 0.55 pts behind Ether. Data to Oct 28, 2026.Ether−41.34%ETHE−41.89%0.55 pts behind EtherTotal return, 1 year, fund against the coinWithin a point of EtherETHE over 1 year: fund −41.89%, Ether −41.34%, 0.55 pts behind Ether. Data to Oct 28, 2026.Ether−41.34%ETHE−41.89%0.55 pts behind EtherTotal return, 1 year

ETHE over 1 year: fund −41.89%, Ether −41.34%, 0.55 pts behind Ether. Data to Oct 28, 2026.

Data to Oct 28, 2026.
MSSE · since launch to Oct 28, 2026 Within a point of Ether
Within a point of EtherMSSE since launch: fund +23.59%, Ether +23.43%, 0.16 pts ahead of Ether. Data to Oct 28, 2026.Ether+23.43%MSSE+23.59%about level with EtherTotal return, since launch, fund against the coinWithin a point of EtherMSSE since launch: fund +23.59%, Ether +23.43%, 0.16 pts ahead of Ether. Data to Oct 28, 2026.Ether+23.43%MSSE+23.59%about level with EtherTotal return, since launch

MSSE since launch: fund +23.59%, Ether +23.43%, 0.16 pts ahead of Ether. Data to Oct 28, 2026.

Data to Oct 28, 2026.

Pair scorecard

MSSE costs 2.36 points a year less.

ETHE vs MSSE: Tracking, Returns & Fees
MeasureETHEMSSE
Return
Total return, 1 year−41.9%not published
Against its benchmark
What it tracksEtherEther
Against Ether, same days0.6% behind0.2% ahead of
Cost and size
Expense ratio2.50%0.14%
Net assets$1.2bnnot read by ETFIQ
Reports to the SEC on10-K, not N-PORT
Holdings
Holdings in commonnot published
ETFIQ Coin Capture Score · MSSE scores higher How much of what holding the coin gave did a holder of the fund keep?

ETHE among the 26 spot crypto trusts with a full year

IQ Crypto Score9.6ETHE42MSSE

How much of its coin's move it captured, after costs, ranked against 26 spot crypto trusts with a full year and 25 spot crypto trusts listed less than a year. 100 is best. How it is computed

ETHE 9.6
1.9, the lowest in this set 98.1, the highest

MSSE among the 25 spot crypto trusts listed less than a year

MSSE 42
2.0, the lowest in this set 98.0, the highest

A percentile among the 26 spot crypto trusts with a full year. MSSE is a percentile among the 25 spot crypto trusts listed less than a year, a different set, so the two marks are not on one scale. Share of the coin's own price growth a holder kept; funds on different coins are ranked together. All crypto ETFs ranked by it →

Method

Side by side

ETHE Grayscale Ethereum Staking ETF · Holds Ether through a custodian MSSE Morgan Stanley Ethereum Trust · Holds Ether through a custodian, first traded Jul 28, 2026
Holds Ether Ether
Net assets, as filed $1.2bn, balance sheet of Jun 30, 2026 not read
Sponsor’s fee 2.50% 0.14%
Fee waiver none none
Staking the filings say it does the filings say it does
First traded not stated Jul 28, 2026
Days since its first trade not stated 92 days
Days it has traded 1,715 66
Days it closed unchanged 13 0
Quoted on an exchange, every trading day on an exchange, every trading day
Fund returned, 1 year −41.9% +23.6% (since launch, Jul 28, 2026)
The coin over the same days −41.3% +23.4%
Difference, percentage points −0.6 pts +0.2 pts
Fund returned since launch not available +23.6%
Difference since launch not available +0.2 pts
Price $18.99 $25.5466
Net assets $1.2bn not read by ETFIQ

As of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Window by window

Window by window: ETHE vs MSSE: Tracking, Returns & Fees
Total returnThe coin over the same daysDifference, percentage points
WindowETHEMSSEETHEMSSEETHEMSSE
1 month−11.4%−11.2%−11.3%−11.3%−0.1 pts+0.1 pts
3 months+25.3%+25.7%+25.6%+25.6%−0.3 pts+0.1 pts
6 months+5.7%–+6.1%–−0.5 pts–
1 year−41.9%–−41.3%–−0.6 pts–
3 years+51.7%–+33.5%–+13.6% of its growth–
Since each listed–+23.6%–+23.4%–+0.2 pts

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The same coin, two trusts

ETHE and MSSE hold the same asset. Both are 1933 Act trusts holding Ether through a custodian, so neither has a portfolio to compare: the whole of each fund is one line. Over the days each has traded, ETHE finished 0.55 of a percentage point behind Ether and MSSE 0.16 of a percentage point ahead, but the two windows are not the same days, so neither number is set against the other here. That gap is the fee, the custody, the creation and redemption friction and the market’s pricing of the shares, compounded into one number.

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About each fund
ETHE

ETHE’s own filings say it does (424B3, Aug 7, 2026). It charges 2.50% and finished only 0.6% behind Ether, so staking covered about 1.9% of that fee over these days.

ETHE holds Ether through a custodian and trades on an exchange, so a holder gets the coin’s return inside a brokerage account rather than a wallet. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, Ether moved −41.3% and ETHE returned −41.9%. That leaves it 0.55 of a percentage point behind. That difference is the fee, the custody cost, the friction of creating and redeeming shares in blocks, and whatever the market paid for the shares rather than for the coin, all of it together. It is the only number on this page the sponsor does not publish itself. ETHE charges 2.50% a year and finished 0.6% behind Ether, so the fee is more than the whole difference. Ether is a proof of stake chain, so a fund holding it can stake. A spot trust is not a registered investment company. It files a 10-K rather than an N-PORT, and its holding is one line: the Ether it custodies.

MSSE

MSSE’s own filings say it does (424B3, Jul 23, 2026). It charges 0.14% and finished only −0.2% behind Ether, so staking covered about 0.3% of that fee over these days.

MSSE holds Ether through a custodian and trades on an exchange, so a holder gets the coin’s return inside a brokerage account rather than a wallet. Over the time since launch to Oct 28, 2026, Ether moved +23.4% and MSSE returned +23.6%. That leaves it 0.16 of a percentage point ahead. MSSE charges 0.14% a year and finished 0.2% ahead of Ether, which a fee cannot do on its own.

Questions people ask

Which tracked Ether more closely, ETHE or MSSE?
Over the days each has traded, ETHE finished 0.55 of a percentage point behind Ether and MSSE 0.16 of a percentage point ahead. Those are not set against each other here, because the two windows are not the same days, so neither is nearer its coin than the other on this page. Each difference carries the fee, the custody cost, the friction of creating and redeeming shares in blocks and whatever the market paid for the shares rather than for the coin.
Do ETHE or MSSE pay a staking yield?
Ether is a proof of stake chain, so staking is possible. Whether either trust stakes, and what the sponsor keeps of it, is a term in its own filings and is read from those rather than assumed.
What is the difference between ETHE and MSSE?
Both hold Ether through a custodian and both trade on an exchange, so what separates them is what each costs a holder over time. ETHE is sponsored by Grayscale; MSSE by Morgan Stanley, first traded Jul 28, 2026.
Which is cheaper, ETHE or MSSE?
ETHE charges 2.50% a year and MSSE charges 0.14%, so MSSE is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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How this is computed

It is a place in a set, not a rating or a recommendation.

Every number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.

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ETFIQ, ETHE against MSSE, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/crypto/ethe-vs-msse

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