VanEck and Grayscale simultaneously submitted their latest amendments to the BNB spot ETF to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on the 16th (VanEck submitted its fifth amendment, and Grayscale submitted its second amendment). The core changes in the two files are highly consistent: the staking function has been removed from the application.
In its revised application, VanEck explicitly stated that "there is no guarantee that the trust will participate in any pledging activities," and added that BNB will remain unpledged "for the foreseeable future and indefinitely." However, the application also retains flexibility: if a decision is made to initiate pledging in the future, shareholders will be notified in advance through an announcement. VanEck's BNB ETF is planned to be listed on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol VBNB .
Grayscale's second amendment also opted for a Nasdaq listing, mirroring VanEck's approach. Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart commented that BNB could be the next crypto asset to launch a spot ETF in the US.
BNB ETF Race Timeline: VanEck Leads, Grayscale Closely Follows
VanEck was the first asset management company in the US to submit an application for a spot BNB ETF, with the initial application dating back to May 2025. Grayscale followed suit on January 23, 2026, entering the market about eight months later. However, despite Grayscale being a latecomer, the frequency and timing of the two companies' revisions were almost synchronized, indicating that both were closely monitoring the SEC's response.
The decision to remove staking was not accidental. The SEC had previously taken a hard line on Grayscale and VanEck's Ethereum ETF staking applications, repeatedly delaying the review process. This time, the BNB ETF's voluntary abandonment of staking is a strategic adjustment made after learning from the lessons of the Ethereum ETF: prioritize approval, and leave the staking function for later discussion.
BNB's Market Landscape and Regulatory Risks
BNB is currently priced at around $651 and has a market capitalization of approximately $87.7 billion, making it the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization after Bitcoin and Ethereum (excluding stablecoins). This massive market capitalization is the motivation for asset management companies to rush in.
However, VanEck also frankly acknowledged the risks in its application: BNB could be classified as a "securities" by the SEC, which, if established, would directly threaten the future of ETFs. Removing the pledging function is precisely an attempt to reduce regulatory friction in this regard.
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