VanEck has updated its filing for the Avalanche exchange-traded fund (ETF) (VAVX), adding staking rewards as a source of income for investors. The document outlines the possibility of generating income by staking a portion of the held AVAX tokens, with rewards reflected in the fund's NAV.
VanEck's Avalanche ETF Filing Update
The amendment to VanEck's filing explicitly states that the fund may receive staking rewards from part of its AVAX holdings. The purpose of this amendment is to provide the fund with an additional income source for investors while maintaining the fund's structure as a spot ETF.
Details on AVAX Staking and Custody
- The fund may stake up to 70% of its AVAX assets to generate income.
- The initial staking provider is Coinbase Crypto Services; any rewards will be credited to the fund net of a 4% service fee charged by Coinbase.
- AVAX tokens will be held by regulated custodians, including Anchorage Digital and Coinbase Custody, which, as stated in the filing, store tokens in cold wallets.
Features of the VAVX Fund
VanEck emphasizes that the fund will not use leverage or derivatives, keeping its profile closer to a traditional spot ETF. To track AVAX prices, the fund relies on the MarketVector Avalanche Benchmark Rate, an index compiled from major exchanges.
The filing also notes that if approved, the fund will trade on Nasdaq under the ticker VAVX.
Context and Competitors
The filing mentions that Bitwise has also updated its spot Avalanche ETF filing to enable income generation through staking, making the income-generating offerings market more prominent. It is also useful to follow news about Coinbase's role in listings and services, such as in the Coinbase news coverage, since the platform is named as the initial staking provider.
For additional context on AVA asset distribution, see the analysis of large AVA wallets, which helps assess the token's market structure.
Why This Matters
For miners with 1–1000 devices, this update does not change the mining process itself: this concerns a fund product that holds and stakes AVAX, not mining directly. However, integrating staking into the ETF shows that part of the AVAX ecosystem is focused on generating income from held tokens rather than just speculative positions.
It is important to understand the difference between mining and staking: mining is the creation of new coins through hardware, while staking involves holding and delegating tokens. If you manage mining equipment, these changes do not require immediate action on your mining infrastructure but may affect AVAX liquidity and investor interest in the long term.
What to Do?
- Keep operations separate: continue monitoring and maintaining mining equipment, as ETFs and staking do not replace mining.
- Track the staking provider's fee — the filing states Coinbase charges a 4% fee — and factor this into evaluating the profitability of AVAX fund products.
- Monitor filing updates and approval status if considering investments in the ETF rather than direct token ownership.
- Assess custodian trustworthiness: the filing names Anchorage Digital and Coinbase Custody, which store tokens in cold wallets; this is a key factor for fund asset security.
