VanEck Commits to Donating 5% of BTC ETF Profits to Bitcoin Developers at Brink

VanEck, a global asset management firm, has committed to donating 5% of profits from the VanEck SolidX Bitcoin Trust, a proposed bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), to the Bitcoin Core developers at Brink, a nonprofit foundation dedicated to the development of the Bitcoin protocol. The announcement was made at the SF Blockchain Week 2020 Conference. VanEck’s commitment is believed to be the first instance of a company publicly committing to supporting a Bitcoin engineering team with continuous, long-term funding. The commitment from VanEck comes at an important time for Bitcoin developers at Brink, who have been filling a critical development role. The developers have been tasked with maintaining the Bitcoin network’s performance and security as well as developing new technologies for its long-term sustainability. In order to achieve these objectives, Bitcoin’s developers have long sought to increase the resources allocated to the development of the Bitcoin protocol. VanEck’s commitment will provide a dependable and continuous source of funding for the Bitcoin development team at Brink. The commitment reportedly came after conversations with the nonprofit’s executive director, Michael Folkson. With the announcement, VanEck has become the first major financial services company to openly back the efforts of Bitcoin developers at Brink. The donation also serves to recognize the importance of the work that the development team at Brink is doing in helping to bring Bitcoin to the mainstream. This donation reaffirms VanEck’s commitment to the growth of the cryptocurrency market. With the proposed ETF, VanEck aims to bridge the gap between the traditional financial markets and Bitcoin and give investors easier access to the cryptocurrency asset class.