Bitwise Launches First US Spot NEAR ETP, Adds Staking Yield
Summary
- Bitwise said it has launched the Bitwise NEAR ETF (NRR), the first U.S. spot NEAR exchange-traded product (ETP).
- It said NRR was designed to invest in NEAR's spot price while also reflecting an annual staking reward rate of about 5%.
- CIO Matt Hougan said NRR could offer investors a way to access the growth potential of AI-agent payment and trading infrastructure.
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Bitwise, a global digital-asset manager, is launching the first U.S. spot exchange-traded product tied to NEAR Protocol.
According to Bitwise, the Bitwise NEAR ETF, trading under the ticker NRR, will begin trading on NYSE Arca on Sept. 29. The annual management fee is 0.75%.
NRR is designed to track NEAR's spot price while also reflecting staking yield. Bitwise plans to manage the fund's NEAR holdings through its in-house institutional staking team. NEAR's annual staking reward rate is currently about 5%.
Bitwise is focused on NEAR's potential use in payments between AI agents and blockchain-based automated trading infrastructure. NEAR's transaction protocol, NEAR Intents, has surpassed $32 billion in cumulative transaction volume, up sharply from less than $1 billion a year earlier.
Matt Hougan, Bitwise's chief investment officer, said fast and reliable payment infrastructure will be needed in an environment where AI agents handle payments and trading on users' behalf. He added that NRR gives investors a way to access that growth potential.
The launch adds NEAR to Bitwise's lineup of single-asset digital-asset products, which already includes Bitcoin, Ether, Solana, XRP and Hyperliquid.
Minseung Kang
minriver@bloomingbit.ioBlockchain journalist | Writer of Trade Now & Altcoin Now, must-read content for investors.