If you want to invest in Bitcoin (BTC 1.73%) without buying the actual cryptocurrency, spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have been an option since January 2024. But which one should you choose?
Nine of the 11 Bitcoin ETFs that were approved on Jan. 11, 2024, have amassed at least $600 million of assets under management (AUM) by now. And even if you have an investing budget of $500 or less, it won't be hard to fit any of these ETFs under that limit. The highest-priced option as of this writing on Nov. 10, 2025, is the Hashdex Bitcoin ETF at $120 per share.
Investors are voting with their wallets in this fund group. According to Finviz, eight of the 11 classic Bitcoin ETFs have seen asset outflows over the last month -- investors are taking out more money than they're putting in. Two more are simply holding steady. The outlier with a very small but definitely positive net inflow was the VanEck Bitcoin Trust (HODL 1.20%), showing a 0.2% inflow in 30 days.
This fund has also been one of the most popular Bitcoin ETFs year to date. Its 2025 inflows have boosted the VanEck fund's AUM by 37%, nearly keeping up with sector leader iShares Bitcoin Trust's (IBIT 1.17%) 49% increase. No other spot Bitcoin ETF saw inflows of 5% or more in the same period.
Why are investors flocking to this specific fund while backing away from several larger ones -- and is the VanEck fund still a good choice for ETF-based Bitcoin investments?
NYSEMKT: HODL
Key Data Points
Splitting hairs in the Bitcoin ETF world
Let's get real. For most people, it doesn't really matter which Bitcoin ETF you pick. They all offer performance very close to the underlying Bitcoin chart, wrapped in the convenience and regulatory safety of an ETF structure. But you have to pick something, and there are some clear differences between the leading names.
The VanEck fund checks all the required boxes to earn consideration for any Bitcoin ETF investor. With $1.9 billion of AUM, it's large enough to offer an effective ETF with significant funding. Its 1.4 million of daily shares traded also suggests strong market liquidity. The market-price orders you place on this fund should settle quickly and without the pricing shocks you might see in a low-volume fund.
Its Bitcoin trades are also managed by the same Coinbase (COIN +0.22%) Bitcoin account service as nearly all of its ETF peers. It's a tried and true custody solution managed by one of the oldest and most popular names in the crypto-trading industry. There's a small bonus to the Coinbase connection, though. Hold that thought.
The minuscule HODL difference
So far, so good -- but most spot Bitcoin ETFs can make similar claims. So how did HODL earn investor trust amid the sweeping ETF drawdowns of October? Here are the top five reasons:
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VanEck has a long experience with crypto-related fund management. It applied for a futures-based Bitcoin ETF in 2017, swiftly followed by an in-house market index tracking Bitcoin prices under the MarketVector index brand. The fund manager's crypto connection is so tight, it picked a slang term for long-term Bitcoin holders as the ticker symbol for its flagship spot Bitcoin ETF.
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Most of the Bitcoin ETFs get their market prices from the one index called the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate -- New York Variant. This index reflects current Bitcoin prices across 8 leading crypto exchanges. VanEck prefers its own MarketVector Bitcoin Benchmark Rate, culled from a shorter list of 5 leading exchanges. It's a pretty academic difference since both indexes show up-to-the-minute prices for the same Bitcoin asset, but it's a different method.
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About that Coinbase bonus, VanEck actually uses two custodian services. The fund was launched with the Winklevoss twins' Gemini firm providing Bitcoin custody, and Coinbase was added just weeks later, on March 1, 2024.
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The fund also offers one of the lowest expense ratios in this category, matching the 0.20% seen in the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB 1.29%) but with a no-fee grace period extended until January 10, 2026. Bitwise's grace period for fees expired by the end of 2024.
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The VanEck team performed a 4-for-1 split of this fund's shares in February this year. At the time, the fund's share price (and the underlying Bitcoin price) had more than doubled since the launch. Without this split, shares would be priced at $120 today. Stock splits (and ETF splits) don't really create value, but VanEck's fund managers showed that they're keeping an eye on the market and are ready to take action that keeps the fund easy to afford.
Image source: Getty Images.
Is HODL worth your $500 investment?
The low management fee probably plays a part in the VanEck fund's trend-bucking inflows. Honestly, it's the only real game-changer on my list. But even if you don't worry about fractions of a percentage in fee differences, you might see some appeal in this fund's clear-eyed management.
I mean, feel free to flip an 11-sided coin or just go with the largest name, the iShares IBIT fund. But the smart money is choosing VanEck's Bitcoin ETF right now, and it's a pretty solid pick with low fees. You could certainly do worse.
