Company: HODL
Filing Date: 2025-03-26
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0000930413-25-000995
Chunk: 193

Company: VanEck Bitcoin ETF
Filing Date: 2025-03-26
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 193
---
 subject to, or may not comply with, regulation in a similar manner as other regulated trading platforms, such as national
securities exchanges or designated contract markets. As a result, the marketplace may lose confidence in digital asset trading
platforms, including prominent trading platforms that handle a significant volume of bitcoin trading.

Many digital asset trading platforms are
unlicensed, unregulated, may be subject to regulation in a relevant jurisdiction, but may not be complying, may operate without
extensive supervision by governmental authorities, and do not provide the public with significant information regarding their
ownership structure, management team, corporate practices, cybersecurity, and regulatory compliance. In

37 

particular, those located outside the United
States may be subject to significantly less stringent regulatory and compliance requirements in their local jurisdictions, and
may take the position that they are not subject to laws and regulations that would apply to a national securities exchange or
designated contract market in the United States, or may, as a practical matter, be beyond the ambit of U.S. regulators. As a result,
trading activity on or reported by these digital asset trading platforms is generally significantly less regulated than trading
in regulated U.S. securities and commodities markets, and may reflect behavior that would be prohibited in regulated U.S. trading
venues.

The bitcoin market globally and in the
United States is not subject to comparable regulatory guardrails as exist in regulated securities markets. Furthermore, many bitcoin
trading venues lack certain safeguards put in place by exchanges for more traditional assets to enhance the stability of trading
on the exchanges and prevent “flash crashes,” such as limit-down circuit breakers. As a result, the prices of bitcoin
on trading venues may be subject to larger and/or more frequent sudden declines than assets traded on more traditional exchanges.
Tools to detect and deter fraudulent or manipulative trading activities such as market manipulation, front-running of trades,
and wash-trading may not be available to or employed by digital asset trading platforms, or may not exist at all.

Bitcoin trading platforms may be exposed
to fraud and manipulation.

The SEC has identified possible sources
of fraud and manipulation in the bitcoin market generally, including, among others (1) “wash trading”; (2)
persons with a dominant position in bitcoin manipulating bitcoin pricing; (3) hacking of the Bitcoin network and trading platforms;
(4) malicious control of the Bitcoin network; (5) trading based on material, non-public information (for example, plans of market
participants to significantly increase or decrease their