The folks at a 69-year-old, $111-billion-AUM (as of July 31) fund firm are preparing to shut down a $21.21-million-AUM pair of active ETFs.

Last Friday (September 6), the team at New York City-based VanEck [profile] revealed plans to liquidate two of their funds: the two-year-old VanEck Dynamic High Income ETF (INC on the NYSE Arca) and the one-year-old VanEck Ethereum Strategy ETF (EFUT on the Cboe BZX). Both ETFs are series of VanEck ETF Trust, and the board gave its approval on September 5 to the liquidation plans.

The VanEck team expects to delist EFUT from the exchange on September 16 (next Monday), then liquidate it a week later (on September 23). As for INC, they expect to delist it on October 8 and liquidate it on October 15.

INC's inception date was November 1, 2022, and it has an expense ratio of 41 basis points. As of yesterday (Wednesday, September 11, 2024), it had $1.1 million in AUM.

EFUT's inception date was October 2, 2023, and it has an expense ratio of 66bps (which bakes in a 7bps fee waiver promised through May 1, 2025). As of yesterday, the fund had $20.11 million in AUM.

Van Eck Associates Corporation (VEAC) serves as administrator and investment advisor to INC (and as administrator to EFUT). Its PM team since inception has included deputy portfolio manager John Lau and PM David Schassler. It is designed as an income-focused fund of funds (specifically, of othe VanEck ETFs).

Van Eck Absolute Return Advisers Corporation serves as investment advisor to EFUT. Chris Malloux took over as its PM in May of this year.

EFUT is designed to invest in ether (ETH) futures. News of ETH's impending demise comes less than two months after the debut of the first nine spot ether exchange-traded products (ETPs), including VanEck's own ETHV. As of yesterday, ETHV had $54.77 million, and its expense ratio is 20bps. (That makes ETHV nearly triple the size of EFUT, at one-third the price.)

INC and EFUT's other service providers include: Dechert LLP as counsel; PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as independent accounting firm; State Street Bank and Trust Company as custodian, fund accountant, securities lending agent, and transfer agent; and Van Eck Securities Corporation as distributor. 

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