The world’s second-largest asset manager has announced it will allow bitcoin and crypto-linked ETFs and mutual funds to trade on its US platform, reversing an historical stance that barred clients from accessing digital-asset products via the firm.
Vanguard Group said has made the move in response to rising institutional demand for exposure to crypto products through traditional investment wrappers, enabling investors to engage with digital assets without directly buying or storing the cryptocurrencies themselves.
The change gives Vanguard’s 50 million clients access to regulated Bitcoin, Ether, XRP and Solana investment products in the United States. The firm had previously felt the assets were too volatile and speculative for client portfolios.
In a statement to InvestorDaily, Vanguard confirmed third-party cryptocurrency ETFs and mutual funds will be available to investors on Vanguard’s US brokerage platform from 2 December 2025 – however, Australia’s platform operates differently.
“Our Personal Investor platform in Australia is different to the brokerage platform in the United States as it is primarily designed to provide direct access to Vanguard Funds and ETFs and not third-party products,” a Vanguard Australia spokesperson said.
“At this time, Vanguard has no plans to offer its own cryptocurrency ETFs or mutual funds.”
Binance ANZ’s marketing director James Quinn-Kumar described Vanguard’s decision as another milestone in crypto’s mainstream adoption.
“We saw BlackRock, Fidelity, VanEck in the US move first – and Vanguard were an exception to that cohort. We just see this as a continuing trend – more and more financial institutions are going to start offering their clientele access to these products and access to this asset class because the demand is there,” Quinn-Kumar said.
“People want to invest in this asset class. They don’t necessarily allocate 100 per cent of their portfolio to it, but they want exposure to it. I think institutions are starting to understand that and meet users where they are – Vanguard is just another example of that.”
Vanguard had previously restricted access to digital asset products but this shift in the US comes more than a year after former BlackRock executive Salim Ramji became Vanguard’s CEO.
It follows comments from a BlackRock executive revealing that the iShares Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) range is now the firm’s most profitable product line.
Launched in January 2024, BlackRock’s US spot bitcoin ETF, IBIT, surged to US$70 billion in assets in record time and had already generated an estimated $245 million in annual fees by October of that year, while an Australian version was launched last month.
IBIT’s rapid rise has been propelled by BlackRock’s global distribution network and a surge in retail, wealth and institutional demand following US approval of spot bitcoin ETFs on 10 January 2024 – with allocations now approaching $100 billion across the firm’s entire bitcoin ETF range.
Hailed as a milestone for the local market, BlackRock launched its first bitcoin ETF in Australia just two weeks ago.
It comes as Bitcoin’s slump continues, with the asset falling below US$85,000 on Monday. BTC has shed nearly one-third of its value since its October record high of US$126,000.
Quinn-Kumar noted that crypto remains an emerging asset class, bringing inevitable volatility.
“Crypto and digital assets in general aren’t immune to the wider financial landscape… fundamentally, we’re seeing investors stay in the ecosystem, rotate into those blue chips. I think we’re going to continue to see this volatility, but investors have a long-term view.
“Even in October as we saw a market drawdown, we’ve seen investors rotate back into bitcoin – bitcoin was the most traded asset in October on Binance.”
Binance research indicates that 26 per cent of Australian adults between 18 and 64 now hold crypto – with another 32 per cent classified as crypto-curious and looking to get involved.
“Thirty-two per cent of the Australian adult population are curious and considering an investment into crypto – if that doesn’t speak to the potential of this market, I don’t know what does,” Quinn-Kumar told InvestorDaily.
Binance observes that investors increasingly view the asset class as a long-term strategy – not only adding crypto as a portfolio diversifier but as a tool for long-term wealth creation.
“On the institutional side, we’re seeing that. People are investing in this asset class to build wealth over the long term.
“They’re definitely viewing crypto as, not replacing traditional assets, but actually adding to them. I think therein lies the massive opportunity for institutions to start meeting consumers and retail investors where they’re at.”
With recent movements in the local regulatory landscape, Quinn-Kumar says he is optimistic heading into 2026.
“I think that’s something that institutions have been sat on the sidelines waiting for,” he said.
“There’s a lot of untapped potential here. I think everyone’s kind of been waiting for some of those regulations to come into place, to offer some of that clarity around what products and solutions and tooling we can offer investors – but you just have to look at that stat in the research … 32 per cent of the Australian adult population are curious and considering an investment into crypto.”
