Goldman Sachs to add Bitcoin, Ethereum ETFs in $2.25B Neos deal

Goldman Sachs has agreed to acquire Neos Investments for up to $2.25 billion, a deal that will add three Bitcoin and Ethereum options-income ETFs managing more than $1.1 billion combined to its asset management business.

According to Goldman Sachs, the cash-and-equity transaction will bring Neos and its more than $30 billion in assets under management into Goldman Sachs Asset Management, subject to performance and service commitments tied to the agreement. The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027 after regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions.

Among the 19 Neos funds included in the transaction are the Neos Bitcoin High Income ETF (BTCI), Boosted Bitcoin High Income ETF (XBCI) and Ethereum High Income ETF (NEHI), giving Goldman an existing lineup of crypto-linked income products while its own proposed Bitcoin income fund remains on file with U.S. regulators.

Goldman Sachs will inherit three crypto income ETFs

Neos launched BTCI in October 2024 as an actively managed ETF designed to combine Bitcoin-linked exposure with monthly income generated through options. The fund had accumulated more than $1 billion in net assets as of Wednesday, making it the largest of Neos’ three crypto-focused products.

Rather than buying Bitcoin directly, BTCI obtains exposure through exchange-traded products linked to the cryptocurrency and uses an options strategy to generate distributions. A Neos shareholder report for the period ending November 2025 showed the portfolio using Bitcoin ETFs alongside options linked to the Cboe Bitcoin U.S. ETF Index.

XBCI, launched in February 2026, applies a more aggressive version of the strategy. The fund had about $111 million in net assets as of Wednesday and seeks roughly 150% exposure to BTCI’s underlying strategy, according to its prospectus, meaning declines in Bitcoin-linked investments can also be magnified.

Ethereum High Income ETF NEHI, meanwhile, was launched in December 2025 and had accumulated more than $77 million in net assets. Like the Bitcoin products, NEHI does not directly hold Ether and instead combines exposure through exchange-traded products with an options-based income strategy.

Neos has built the three crypto ETFs as part of a larger range of income funds covering U.S. equity indexes, fixed income, Bitcoin, Ether and gold. Founded in 2022, the investment manager now oversees more than $30 billion across 19 options-based ETFs.

“As investor demand for active ETFs grows, NEOS’ disciplined investment approach is highly complementary to our capabilities across buffer, managed outcome and income strategies,” Goldman Sachs Chairman and CEO David Solomon said.

Neos deal could affect Goldman’s filed Bitcoin ETF plans

The acquisition also puts an existing Bitcoin income fund inside Goldman months after the bank filed to launch a competing product of its own.

In April, crypto.news reported that Goldman had filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for the Goldman Sachs Bitcoin Premium Income ETF. The proposed fund would invest at least 80% of its net assets in instruments providing Bitcoin exposure, primarily through spot Bitcoin exchange-traded products, before selling call options against part of the position.

Goldman’s filing proposed an options overwrite covering between 40% and 100% of its Bitcoin exposure depending on market conditions. Selling the calls would generate premiums for monthly income, although the structure would also limit some of the fund’s participation when Bitcoin rises sharply.

Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said following the Neos announcement that the acquisition could explain why the Goldman product filed in April has not launched.

With BTCI already holding more than $1 billion in assets, Balchunas said the Neos acquisition could allow Goldman to “leapfrog” BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF, or BITA, rather than building a competing fund from the beginning.

Goldman has not said whether it intends to withdraw, modify, or proceed with its Bitcoin Premium Income ETF following the Neos transaction.

BlackRock has already entered the Bitcoin income ETF market

Competition for Bitcoin options-income products intensified in June when BlackRock brought BITA to market.

A June filing update showed that BlackRock planned to generate income by writing covered calls primarily against its iShares Bitcoin Trust, or IBIT, and Bitcoin ETF-linked indexes. The filing also set BITA’s sponsor fee at 0.65%.

BlackRock subsequently launched the fund on June 16. Unlike a conventional spot Bitcoin ETF, BITA combines Bitcoin exposure, mainly through IBIT shares, with call options written against part of the portfolio.

An analysis of BITA published after the launch found that BlackRock planned to write calls against roughly 25% to 35% of the fund’s net asset value each month while targeting annual income of between 15% and 25%. The trade-off comes from surrendering some potential gains above the strike prices of the calls when Bitcoin rises sharply.

BITA had accumulated about $59 million in net assets as of Wednesday, compared with more than $1 billion for Neos’ BTCI.

Neos’ longer operating history in the category gives Goldman an established Bitcoin income product if the acquisition closes, while XBCI adds leveraged Bitcoin-linked exposure and NEHI extends the same general income approach to Ether.

Goldman expands its options ETF business through acquisitions

Neos is Goldman’s second multibillion-dollar ETF acquisition in 2026.

The firm completed its roughly $2 billion purchase of Innovator Capital Management in April, adding an investment manager focused on defined-outcome and options-based ETFs. Innovator’s products use options structures to establish predetermined ranges for potential gains and losses over specified periods.

Adding Neos would increase the scale of the same part of Goldman’s asset management operation. Goldman said derivative-income ETFs across the industry now manage about $180 billion, citing Morningstar data, after recording a compound annual growth rate of more than 70% since 2021.

Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Innovator and Neos together managed more than $130 billion across their global ETF platforms as of June 30. Goldman said the combined operation would include roughly $80 billion in active ETFs and make the firm the eighth-largest active ETF provider based on Morningstar data.

Neos co-founders Troy Cates and Garrett Paolella are expected to become partners at Goldman Sachs Asset Management once the transaction closes. Neos’ investment professionals and client-service employees are also expected to join the firm under the agreement.