Methodic Capital Management announced Wednesday the launch of the Methodic CoinDesk ETH Staking Fund, designed to offer professional investors the total return of ether (ETH) by combining exposure to both the token itself and staking rewards.

Methodic's fund arrives at a time when investment firms are racing to offer digital asset investment vehicles. Several asset managers introduced futures-based ETH exchange-traded funds (ETF) earlier this month and Cathie Woods's ARK Invest filed for a spot ETH ETF last month.

"This compliant, indexed, passive, private fund caters to high-net-worth and institutional investors as well as companies looking to accumulate ETH to support future on-chain business, aligning with the evolving needs of the digital asset investment landscape," the press release reads.

The fund uses the CoinDesk Ether Total Return Index (ETXTR), a combination of the CoinDesk Ether Price Index (ETX) and the Composite Ether Staking Rate (CESR), calculated by CoinDesk Indices and administered by digital asset manager CoinFund. Coindesk Indices is a subsidiary of CoinDesk.

BitGo will custody and stake the fund's assets, the press release said, while Oasis Pro Markets – an investment bank and FINRA-registered marketplace – will act as tokenization agent to bring the fund's shares to blockchain rails and facilitate trading on a secondary market.

“We are setting a new management standard for ETH Staking products,” said Jason Hall, CEO of Methodic Capital. “BitGo's custody capabilities and our diligent quarterly financials reporting will provide a secure, transparent and precise way to invest.”