The free ride for VanEck’s Bitcoin ETF is officially over after falling $1.4 billion short of growth target

VanEck's Bitcoin ETF ends its zero-sponsor-fee period today, July 31, with $1.076 billion in net assets, equal to 43.0% of the waiver's $2.5 billion asset threshold.

The VanEck Bitcoin ETF, which trades as HODL, reported the asset figure as of July 30. It was about $1.424 billion below the threshold, meaning HODL remained fully covered by the waiver through its final day.

The waiver's mechanics are more precise than a simple cap. VanEck waived the sponsor fee on the first $2.5 billion of trust assets through July 31. Had the fund grown beyond that level before the deadline, only assets above $2.5 billion would have incurred a 0.20% fee, producing a weighted sponsor fee.

After July 31, the 0.20% sponsor fee applies to all trust assets, according to VanEck's latest fee-waiver filing. VanEck had not announced another extension by Friday morning, and the fund's SEC submissions feed contained no newer fee-waiver filing.

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At HODL's July 30 asset level, a 0.20% annual sponsor fee would amount to about $2.15 million if assets remained unchanged. For an investor, the same rate equals $20 a year for every $10,000 invested before changes in the share price.

That is the sponsor fee, not a measure of total ownership cost. Brokerage commissions, bid-ask spreads, premiums or discounts to net asset value, taxes and other costs can also affect an investor's result.

VanEck filed the latest extension on Nov. 25, 2025, replacing an earlier Jan. 10, 2026 deadline with the July 31 end date. Farside Investors' full daily table shows that HODL recorded a net $87.6 million of outflows across 169 dated sessions from Nov. 25 through July 30.

The flow total does not measure a change in assets under management and cannot, on its own, establish investor rejection or predict what happens after the fee begins. Net assets also move with Bitcoin‘s value and reflect creations, redemptions and expenses.

The latest session offers only a snapshot. HODL attracted $2.3 million on July 30, about 0.99% of the $233.1 million net inflow across the tracked U.S. spot-Bitcoin products. Farside listed HODL's cumulative net inflows at $1.146 billion, a separate measure from the fund's $1.076 billion of net assets.

Once the waiver expires, HODL's 0.20% sponsor fee will match the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF's fee. It will sit below the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF's 0.25% fee but one basis point above the Franklin Bitcoin ETF's 0.19% fee.

Among those three comparison products, HODL will be tied with one, cheaper than one and slightly more expensive than one on recurring sponsor fees. Its zero-fee period is ending on the calendar, without the $2.5 billion threshold coming into play.

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