Bitwise has filed a third amended S-1 for its proposed spot NEAR ETF with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, moving the product further along the registration process. According to the updated documents, the fund is slated to list on NYSE Arca under the NRR ticker, advancing its plan to offer a US-listed investment product backed by NEAR. The amended filing outlines the ETF's key terms and ticker details, though the product cannot begin trading until necessary registration and exchange approvals are completed.
As reported in the latest amended filing, Bitwise intends to stake up to 100% of the trust's NEAR holdings to earn additional income beyond tracking the cryptocurrency's price. The trust would primarily seek to track the value of NEAR held by the trust, minus operating costs and other liabilities. Bitwise Asset Management, the sponsor's parent company, provided $200 in seed capital covering eight shares priced at $25 each. The filing emphasizes that the ETF's yield mechanics serve as a key differentiator in the competitive digital asset ETF market, with the staking strategy highlighting the fund's ability to generate passive income for investors.
According to market data, NEAR rose approximately 4% to $1.73 following the ETF filing announcement, while trading volume fell about 10% over the previous 24 hours. The price recovery came amid broader market concerns tied to potential unwind risks in yen-funded arbitrage and broader risk-off sentiment. In a separate development, the NEAR Protocol rolled out the Nearcore 2.13 upgrade and introduced a staking-based payment feature, adding network utility and potentially enhancing the ETF's underlying asset performance.
The Bitwise filing comes as Wall Street firms broaden their digital asset offerings, with Morgan Stanley Investment Management launching exchange-traded products tracking Ethereum and Solana in late July. The Morgan Stanley Ethereum Trust and Morgan Stanley Solana Trust trade on NYSE Arca under the MSSE and MSOL tickers respectively, both charging an annual management fee of 0.14%. Grayscale has also amended its filing for a proposed NEAR investment product, reflecting a broader push by US asset managers to expand beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum. The development represents a significant advancement in the crypto-asset ETF market, with Bitwise's 100% staking strategy positioning it as a potential leader in yield-focused digital asset products.
According to market data, NEAR traded around $1.73 after gaining approximately 4%, with the move following the amended ETF filing and the rollout of the Nearcore 2.13 network upgrade. However, the 10% decline in trading volume suggests the price recovery had not yet attracted broad market participation. The staking arrangement introduces additional risks related to validator performance, liquidity, custody and the time required to unstake tokens, though the filing notes the trust may need to retain liquid NEAR for redemptions and market conditions. Market participants remain cautious amid broader risk-off sentiment and carry-trade unwind concerns, with the development having no direct link to traditional financial assets.
