Bitwise Adds Staking In Updated Avalanche ETF Filing, Leading U.S. Race

Bitwise has intensified the Avalanche ETF race by updating its S-1 filing with the U.S. SEC, positioning its product to become the first American exchange-traded fund to enable staking on Avalanche’s proof-of-stake network.

The updated filing renames the ETF ticker to BAVA and sets a competitive sponsor fee of 0.34%, lower than VanEck’s 0.40% and Grayscale’s 0.50%. Under the proposal, the trust may stake up to 70% of its AVAX holdings, with Bitwise taking a 12% share of the staking rewards as expenses and passing the remainder to shareholders.

This marks one of the earliest U.S. ETF filings to fully embrace staking after recent IRS guidance cleared tax concerns around yield-generating crypto funds. Bitwise is also offering a full fee waiver for the first month on the first $500 million in assets.

Additional updates include a liquidity reserve, strengthened custody arrangements with Coinbase, and expanded disclosures on risks ranging from exchange hacks to quantum-computing threats. Bitwise, VanEck, and Grayscale are all seeking approval in Q1 2026.

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