First US Spot Bitcoin ETF Shuts Down as BlackRock's IBIT Swallows the Market

The first US spot Bitcoin ETF is shutting down.

Hashdex Asset Management announced on August 4 that it will close and liquidate the Hashdex Bitcoin ETF (NYSE Arca: DEFI), ending a two-year effort to compete in a market now dominated by funds that are thousands of times larger. The decision makes DEFI the first spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund in the United States to be liquidated.

As of July 30, 2026, the fund held approximately $14.7 million in assets under management, equivalent to roughly 225 BTC. Its peak was approximately $17.54 million in May 2025. That number never came close to the scale needed to cover operating costs in a category where the leading fund manages more than 3,200 times as much capital.

How the Wind-Down Works

Hashdex laid out a fixed liquidation schedule in its SEC filing.

• August 17, 2026 is DEFI’s final trading day on NYSE Arca. Investors can sell shares through their brokerage up to this date under normal conditions.
• After August 17, the fund will stop accepting new creation orders from authorized participants and will be delisted from the exchange.
• Hashdex will then sell the fund’s remaining Bitcoin holdings on the open market and settle any outstanding obligations.
• A cash liquidating distribution is expected on or around August 28, 2026, based on the fund’s net asset value at the time of liquidation, minus closing costs.