VanEck and Grayscale Investments are seeking competitive advantage to attract more investors amid growing institutional demand for Bitcoin.
In a recent statement, VanEck informed its investors that they can invest in its Bitcoin spot ETF, the Vaneck Bitcoin Trust (HODL), which is listed on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), no tariffs until March 31, 2025 or until the first $1.500 billion is reached in fund assets.
If this happens before the scheduled date, fees will be 0,20% and will be charged on assets over the first $1.500 billion, the company said.
The New York-based investment manager has waived its sponsor fees for a full year, starting March 12, 2024, through March 31, 2025, as part of a strategy to attract the growing mass of investors who want exposure to the market's leading cryptocurrency: Bitcoin.
According to release By the asset management company, the sponsor fee for its Bitcoin ETF, HODL, has been reduced by 5 basis points.
New Bitcoin Fund Introduced, With Competitive Fees
On the other hand, digital asset manager Grayscale Investments has also made a significant move in the search for competitive fees that attract more investors to its investment products.
The Connecticut-based crypto asset management pioneer has filed a new application with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to launch a new investment product, which will be a spin-off of its current Bitcoin exchange-traded fund, the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC).
In the filing, Grayscale proposes the creation of a new fund, called Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust, which will trade under the ticker BTC, which will be a derivative of GBTC. The new fund, according to several people familiar with the matter, is intended to offer investors much more affordable fees than the 1,5% rate on the company’s current Bitcoin ETF.
Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart said the company has not yet revealed what fees this new fund will have or what percentage of assets will be divested from GBTC. However, he said he was certain Grayscale was looking to create an investment product that would be much cheaper and cost competitive.
In 2021, Seyffart teased that Grayscale would create a derivative of its GBTC fund that would be much cheaper and more accessible to investors. Later in January, before the approval of spot ETFs, he said the company would use the BTC ticker to create GBTC’s “sibling.”
The ETF expert noted that the SEC has up to 270 days to respond to the new application made by Grayscale Investments and decide whether or not to approve the fund. Meanwhile, GBTC continues to lose market share to its main competitors, such as BlackRock and Fidelity Investments. Since GBTC became an exchange-traded fund, it has seen more than $11.000 billion worth of BTC flow out, due to its high fees.
BlackRock and Fidelity's Bitcoin spot ETFs, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), have fees of 0,20% and 0,25%, respectively, and are currently the largest BTC ETFs by amount of assets in reserves and trade volume achieved.
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