Trump Media Bails on Bitcoin ETF — Here’s the Real Reason Why

TLDR

• Trump Media & Technology Group has withdrawn its applications for both a spot Bitcoin ETF and a Bitcoin-Ethereum ETF from the SEC.
• The sponsor, Yorkville America, says the move is strategic — to reapply under the Investment Company Act of 1940 framework.
• The withdrawal comes as U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $648.6 million in net outflows on May 18, 2025.
• BlackRock’s fund suffered the largest single-day loss, with $448.4 million in outflows.
• A Bloomberg analyst suggests the competitive fee landscape, including Morgan Stanley’s new fund charging just 14 basis points, may have also played a role.

Trump Media & Technology Group, the company behind the Truth Social platform, has pulled its applications for two crypto exchange-traded funds from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The company filed to withdraw both its Truth Social Bitcoin ETF and its Truth Social Bitcoin & Ethereum ETF. Both applications had originally been filed in June 2025 under Form S-1 of the Securities Act of 1933.

Neither fund had been declared effective by the SEC. No securities had been sold in connection with either offering.

Why Trump Media Is Pulling the Applications

Yorkville America, the sponsor and investment advisor behind the proposed funds, said the decision was a strategic one.

The firm wants to refile under the Investment Company Act of 1940, known as the ’40 Act, rather than the ’33 Act structure it had previously used.

Steve Neamtz, president of Yorkville America, said the ’40 Act “allows us to bring more differentiated investment strategies to our investors that are not possible under the ’33 Act framework.”

The ’40 Act governs how investment companies are structured and operated, while the ’33 Act focuses on the initial public sale of securities.

Yorkville said the ’40 Act structure offers better investor protections, greater tax efficiency, and improved transparency.

Analyst Points to Competition

Bloomberg Research Analyst James Seyffart offered another possible reason for the move.

He pointed to the increasingly competitive fee environment in the U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF market. Morgan Stanley launched its Bitcoin ETF last month with a fee ratio of just 14 basis points — the lowest of any U.S. Bitcoin ETF.

That fund has already pulled in more than $230 million in inflows, overtaking both Hashdex and WisdomTree’s Bitcoin products in net assets.

The SEC first approved spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024. Since then, funds in the category have recorded more than $57.7 billion in cumulative inflows.

$648 Million Exits Bitcoin ETFs in One Day

The withdrawal also came the same week that U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw a sharp pullback in institutional demand.

On May 18, 2025, spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $648.6 million in net outflows in a single day.

BlackRock’s fund saw the largest outflow, with $448.4 million leaving the product. Fidelity’s fund lost $63.4 million. ARK Invest’s fund saw $109.6 million in withdrawals.

Bitwise, VanEck, Invesco, and Franklin Templeton also reported outflows that day. WisdomTree and Valkyrie saw no movement either way.

All major Bitcoin ETF products recorded either outflows or zero inflows on May 18.

The post Trump Media Bails on Bitcoin ETF — Here’s the Real Reason Why appeared first on CoinCentral.