Goldman Sachs agreed on Wednesday to acquire NEOS Investments for up to $2.25 billion in cash and equity, a deal that would bring an established Bitcoin income ETF into Goldman Sachs Asset Management at a moment when the bank still has its own competing product on file with federal regulators.
NEOS, founded in 2022, manages $30 billion across 19 options-based income ETFs as of June 30. The transaction is subject to performance and service commitments and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027, pending regulatory approval. Among the NEOS funds is the NEOS Bitcoin High Income ETF, known as BTCI, which had accumulated more than $1 billion in net assets as of Wednesday.
Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said on X after the announcement that the acquisition may explain why Goldman has not launched the Bitcoin Premium Income ETF it filed for in April. Balchunas added that BTCI's existing asset base could allow Goldman to "leapfrog" BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF rather than build from scratch. Goldman has not said whether it intends to withdraw, modify, or proceed with the April filing.
A Bitcoin ETF Goldman did not launch but may not need to
In April, Goldman filed a registration statement with the 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 through spot Bitcoin exchange-traded products and write call options against 40% to 100% of that exposure, depending on market conditions.
The structure closely mirrors BTCI's approach. BTCI, launched by NEOS in October 2024, obtains Bitcoin exposure through exchange-traded products rather than direct coin ownership and uses options to generate monthly income 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.
BlackRock entered the same category on June 16 with its iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF, known as BITA. BlackRock set the fund's sponsor fee at 0.65% and targeted annual income of between 15% and 25%, writing calls against roughly 25% to 35% of its net asset value each month. BITA had accumulated about $59 million in net assets as of Wednesday, compared with more than $1 billion for BTCI over the same period.
What NEOS built beyond Bitcoin
Two other crypto products are part of the deal. The Boosted Bitcoin High Income ETF, or XBCI, launched in February 2026 and targets roughly 150% exposure to BTCI's underlying strategy, which means losses in Bitcoin-linked investments can also be amplified. The fund had approximately $111 million in net assets as of Wednesday.
The NEOS Ethereum High Income ETF, known as NEHI, launched in December 2025 and applies the same options-income framework to Ether. Like the Bitcoin products, NEHI does not hold Ether directly. The fund had accumulated more than $77 million in net assets by Wednesday.
Goldman Sachs Chairman and CEO David Solomon framed the acquisition around what NEOS adds to an existing set of capabilities.
"As investor demand for active ETFs grows, NEOS' disciplined investment approach is highly complementary to our capabilities across buffer, managed outcome and income strategies. Together, we will give investors a diverse toolkit for different market environments," he said.
Goldman's second large ETF acquisition this year
The NEOS deal follows Goldman's roughly $2 billion purchase of Innovator Capital Management, which closed in April 2026. Innovator focuses on defined-outcome ETFs that use options to establish predetermined gain-and-loss ranges over specified periods, a product category that differs from NEOS's income emphasis but sits within the same derivative-based market.
Goldman cited Morningstar data in its announcement, noting that derivative income ETFs across the industry had reached approximately $180 billion in assets under management, with a compound annual growth rate of more than 70% since 2021. As of June 30, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Innovator, and NEOS together managed more than $130 billion across their global ETF platforms. The combined active ETF total would stand at approximately $80 billion, which Goldman said would make the firm the eighth-largest active ETF provider based on Morningstar data.
Goldman Sachs Global Banking and Markets served as financial advisor on the transaction. Barclays acted as exclusive financial advisor to NEOS, with Ropes and Gray LLP as legal counsel. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen and Katz and Willkie Farr and Gallagher LLP served as Goldman's legal advisors.
The founders who grew NEOS to $30 billion in four years
NEOS reached $30 billion under management roughly four years after its 2022 founding. Co-founders Garrett Paolella and Troy Cates are expected to become partners at Goldman Sachs Asset Management once the transaction closes, and the full NEOS team is expected to join Goldman under the agreement.
Paolella described the business he and Cates built around the premise that each investor's needs are distinct.
"Our vision for NEOS since our founding has been to meet investors where they are, challenge conventional thinking and develop innovative investment solutions that aim to help achieve better outcomes. Every investor's income needs, risk tolerances and objectives are unique, and we built our business with that core understanding. Our commitment to that principle is absolute," he said.
Cates positioned the Goldman combination as the next phase for the firm.
"As we think about the next chapter for our business, Goldman Sachs Asset Management is a partner that shares our commitment to investment excellence and innovation. Together, we'll combine NEOS' entrepreneurial spirit with Goldman Sachs' scale, expertise and resources to expand the reach of NEOS' solutions and deliver even greater value for our investors," he said.
NEOS's shareholder base includes Aretex Capital and investor Tom Lydon.
Roman Zaika
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