Grayscale Files S-1 to Convert Near Trust Into NYSE ETF

Grayscale Investments has submitted a Form S-1 registration statement to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission seeking to convert the Grayscale Near Trust into a spot exchange-traded fund. If the US SEC declares the registration effective, the vehicle would list on NYSE Arca under the ticker “GSNR,” moving from its current quotation on the OTCQB market.

The trust holds NEAR, the native token of the Near Network, and is designed to give investors price exposure through publicly traded shares rather than direct token ownership. The filing also sets limits on staking and describes how staking could work under certain conditions.

Grayscale Filing Targets NYSE Arca Listing Under Ticker GSNR

In the ETF filing, Grayscale states that the shares are currently quoted on OTCQB under “GSNR” and that, after effectiveness, the trust intends to list those shares on NYSE Arca under the same symbol. The registration statement also notes that the trust plans to issue shares continuously and register an indeterminate number of shares, with sales prices influenced by NEAR price and the share price on NYSE Arca at the time of sale.

The structure described in the filing includes the trust’s creation and redemption process and references in-kind activity through authorized participants. The document states that NYSE Arca has regulatory approval for the trust to create and redeem shares in-kind for NEAR. It also allows cash creations and redemptions under the process outlined in the prospectus.

Service Providers and Reference Rate

Grayscale’s S-1 identifies several service providers tied to the trust’s operations. CSC Delaware Trust Company is listed as the trustee, while The Bank of New York Mellon is named as both the transfer agent and the administrator. Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company is identified as the co-transfer agent, Coinbase, Inc. as the prime broker, and Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC as the custodian.

The filing also describes how the trust determines value through an index-based reference rate. It states that the trust has used the CoinDesk NEAR Reference Rate Price in its operations and that, before listing on NYSE Arca, the sponsor intends to change the index to the CoinDesk NEAR CCIXber Reference Rate.

The S-1 includes additional disclosure on historical premium levels during the OTC period and explains that the trading price can differ from NAV because of supply and demand and the non-concurrent trading hours between exchange trading and crypto spot markets.

Staking Remains Restricted

Moreover, staking is addressed directly in the prospectus. The filing says the trust is not permitted to engage in staking unless a “Staking Condition” is satisfied, and it adds that the sponsor may decide not to pursue satisfaction of that condition. As of the filing, the prospectus states that staking is unavailable under current terms unless those requirements are met.

If staking becomes available in the future, Grayscale describes a “Provider-Facilitated Staking” approach in which the trust would stake NEAR through one or more third-party staking providers operating validator infrastructure.

The filing states the trust would accept staking consideration only in NEAR, not in other digital assets, and that the trust would retain ownership and control of its staked NEAR under protocol constraints described in the document.

Issuers Broaden Crypto ETF Lineups

Grayscale’s filing arrives after Bitwise submitted an S-1 registration statement in May 2025 for a Bitwise NEAR ETF structured to provide exposure to NEAR. With Grayscale now pursuing conversion of an existing NEAR trust into an exchange-listed product, NEAR joins a list of assets for which issuers have sought single-asset ETF structures beyond Bitcoin and Ether.

The broader ETF pipeline has continued to expand as exchanges and issuers use updated listing pathways for crypto-linked products. Recently, Bitwise filed documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for 11 new crypto strategy ETFs tied to assets such as Sui, Zcash, NEAR, Uniswap, and Bittensor.

Following Grayscale’s ETF filing, NEAR price rose from $1.50 to $1.54 at the time of reporting. The move came as the token traded within a 24-hour range that extended up to $1.60.