VanEck Files Amended S-1 for Spot Solana ETF, Slashes Management Fee to 0.30%

VanEck has officially filed its fifth amendment for the spot Solana ETF (VSOL) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The filing stated that there’s a 0.30% management fee and expanded details about its staking policy.

Solana ETF Will Combine Price Tracking with a Regulated Staking System

The SEC filing confirms that the ETF will seek to reflect the performance of SOL price while seeking more returns through staking. It is the first of a kind hybrid structure for a digital asset fund in the U.S.

The company will use one or more third-party staking providers, including SOL Strategies, to manage Solana delegation and yield generation. Recently, VanEck expanded this approach by filing for a staked Hyperliquid ETF in the U.S., with expectations of a HYPE listing on Coinbase soon. The selection of each provider will be done according to their performance, uptime, and adherence to regulations.

The staking model by VanEck has a liquidity risk policy that can enable the capacity for redemptions in a volatile market. The company will have a buffer of 5% to make sure that there will not be any unbonding that will act as a barrier to investors redeeming their funds. Normally, these take two to three days in Solana.

Gemini and Coinbase to Secure Low-Cost Solana ETF

The policy will be reviewed annually to adjust staking allocations and preserve market efficiency. Gemini Trust Company and Coinbase custodian will be the custodians of the ETF and store the Solana holdings of the fund in an insured and regulated manner.

VanEck also affirmed that it can consider the liquid staking tokens (LSTs) later, provided that regulators will allow it to do so. Recently, VanEck registered a Lido Staked Ethereum Trust in Delaware, highlighting its ongoing move toward staking-integrated fund products. This possible development indicates a switch of focus towards tokenized yield instruments in SEC-compliant framework.

The ETF’s unified 0.30% sponsor fee covers all operating expenses except extraordinary legal or regulatory costs. This low-fee strategy makes VSOL one of the most competitively priced digital asset ETFs, similar to the Bitcoin offering by VanEck.

Regulatory Uncertainty Amid Government Shutdown

An ETF analyst note that, despite VanEck’s detailed submission, there is currently no set deadline for the SEC to approve or reject the application. According to Bloomberg’s James Seyffart, “things are under the Generic Listing Standards (GLS) now, so there’s no fixed approval timeline.”

He also emphasized that the ongoing U.S. government shutdown has effectively paused all regulatory progress, saying, “no one knows anything while that’s happening.” This means the approval process for Solana ETFs is likely to remain on hold until normal government operations resume.

Under this generic framework, exchanges like Cboe BZX can list crypto-based ETFs without requiring an SEC approval. They only need to meet the listing and disclosure requirements already in place. However, the shutdown prevents staff from issuing clarifications or publishing procedural updates.