The Avalanche (AVAX) ecosystem has celebrated the first exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the United States. The VanEck Avalanche ETF (VAVX) launched on NASDAQ on Monday, January 6, 2026.
First Avalanche ETF in U.S. Unveiled
According to the announcement, the VAVX ETF began trading with a waiver on sponsor fees for the first $500 million or until February 28, 2026. After the waiver period ends, VanEck Digital intends to charge 0.2%.
“We’re excited to launch VAVX to provide investors with a transparent, exchange-traded vehicle to access a network that we believe will drive the next phase of institutional blockchain adoption,” Kyle DaCruz, Director of Digital Assets Product at VanEck, stated.
A Growing Ecosystem
The strategic launch of the VAVX in the United States has coincided with the growing DeFi ecosystem on the Avalanche blockchain. According to market data from DeFiLlama, the total value locked (TVL) surged exponentially in 2025 to currently hover around 91.92 million AVAX.
Since the approval of the Genius Act in the United States, the stablecoin supply on the Avalanche network has surged to over $1.65 billion.
Source: DeFiLlama
What’s Next for AVAX?
Following the strategic launch of the VAVX on NASDAQ today, AVAX price gained 2% to trade at about $11.74 at press time. However, the mid-cap altcoin, with a market cap of about $5 billion, is not yet out of the woods.
From a technical analysis perspective, AVAX price is likely to retest the support level around $9.3. Moreover, the AVAX/USD pair was recently rejected at around $15, which was a strong support level in 2026.
