VanEck’s Files New ‘Onchain Economy’ ETF to Target Crypto Infrastructure, Not Coins

Asset management firm VanEck filed for a new exchange-traded fund (ETF) on Wednesday, targeting companies building infrastructure for digital assets.

Notably, the fund’s structure avoids direct crypto exposure, as is usual from other ETFs, but maintains exposure to the digital asset markets it compiles.

The Onchain Economy ETF seeks to allocate at least 80% of its assets to “Digital Transformation Companies” and digital asset instruments, according to a January 15 SEC filing reviewed by Decrypt.

These companies include crypto exchanges, payment gateways, mining operations, and firms providing infrastructure services.

It also seeks to invest in firms providing the core technology, infrastructure, and data center capacities that support digital asset operations.

“Digital Transformation Companies are selected based on a combination of fundamental analysis, market trends, the company’s strategic positioning within the digital asset ecosystem, and valuation,” VanEck stated in the filing.

For digital asset instruments, however, VanEck notes in the filing that while it seeks to “target investments that offer exposure to the largest digital assets by market capitalization,” this fund would exclude stablecoins.

It is unclear whether this description also pertains to stablecoin issuers more broadly or only to their products and offerings. VanEck did not immediately return Decrypt’s request for comment.

The fund plans to establish a Cayman Islands subsidiary to manage certain digital asset investments, with exposure capped at 25% of total assets each quarter.

VanEck’s latest filing follows a wave of new crypto ETF filings. In November, Bitwise submitted plans for a 10 Crypto Index Fund ETF, while Grayscale filed a request to convert its Solana Trust into an ETF in December last year.

Wednesday’s filing follows VanEck’s closure of its Ethereum futures ETF in September last year.

VanEck Head of Digital Assets Matthew Sigel deleted a post about the filing, likely due to regulatory restrictions in which the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission prohibits disclosure of certain details while a proposal is under review.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair