ETF of the Year Award Nominees
After another record-breaking year in the ETF industry, etf.com selected the finalists for its annual ETF of the Year award from a massive pool of nominations. The etf.com editorial staff rigorously vetted each nominee, presenting them to a panel of judges who represent a diverse range of expertise and opinion in the ETF industry.
The five finalists for ETF of the Year were pinpointed based on a range of criteria, including fund flows, expense ratios and performance relative to the funds' respective category peers. Innovative qualities were also considered.
As I’m sure my fellow judges would agree, selecting the nominees and, ultimately, this year’s winner was no easy feat. It was a true Herculean task. – Nate Geraci
IBIT Nominated for ETF of the Year Award
BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) redefined what's possible in the ETF world, shattering records and bringing cryptocurrency investing into the mainstream financial ecosystem. The landmark spot Bitcoin ETF accumulated billions in assets at a pace never before seen in the industry.
IBIT reached the $10 billion asset mark just seven weeks after its January 2024 launch. This milestone was achieved faster than any exchange-traded fund in history, demonstrating the enormous pent-up demand for regulated Bitcoin exposure.
By late May 2024, IBIT had accumulated nearly $20 billion in assets under management, making it the world's largest bitcoin fund and surpassing the long-dominant Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC). BlackRock's offering quickly became the leading product among the newly approved Bitcoin ETFs. – DJ Shaw
JAAA Nominated for ETF of the Year Award
2025 Active ETF of the Year award nominee, the Janus Henderson AAA CLO ETF (JAAA), attracted over $15 billion in assets in 2024, a testament to its compelling combination of high yields and relative safety.
By actively investing in AAA-rated collateralized loan obligations (CLOs), JAAA provided fixed-income investors with an appealing option amid persistent inflation and economic uncertainty.
The fund's focus on top-tier CLO tranches offered enhanced income potential while maintaining a conservative risk profile, aligning with investor demand for both yield and stability during a tumultuous financial landscape. – Kent Thune
NUKZ Nominated for ETF of the Year Award
While the Range Nuclear Renaissance Index ETF (NUKZ) technically qualifies as a thematic strategy, the momentum behind the high-flying $200 million ETF might best be described as global and secular.
Launched in January 2024 by Range ETFs in Cold Spring Harbor, New York, NUKZ was among the best-performing exchange-traded funds of 2024 and has been nominated for etf.com ETF of the Year, the winner of which will be announced at an April awards ceremony in New York.
NUKZ, which was up as much as 25% earlier this year before cooling off, has gained more than 32% over the past 12 months by riding a wave that Range Chief Executive Officer Tim Rotolo describes as a “nuclear renaissance demand thesis.”
“This is not a trading strategy,” he said. “You can see that the world is consuming more power, and nuclear and baseload power are secular demand stories.” – Jeff Benjamin
NVDL Nominated for ETF of the Year Award
Investors who piled into Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) stock last year were richly rewarded as the shares nearly tripled on growing appetite for artificial intelligence products and services.
What about those who picked up the GraniteShares 2x Long NVDA Daily ETF (NVDL)? They got it back, as the name says, two times.
NVDL, among the five nominees for etf.com’s ETF of the Year award, jumped nearly fivefold last year, pulling in a net $3.5 billion. Launched in December 2022 at just over $4, it crossed $81 in June 2024 as NVDA soared. Volumes surged: Days of more than 20 million shares trading hands weren’t uncommon toward the end of the year, roughly quadruple where they were when 2024 began. – Ron Day
VOO Nominated for ETF of the Year Award
The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) is one of five nominees for ETF of the Year at the 2025 etf.com Awards—and it’s not hard to see why.
Earlier this year, VOO made headlines by overtaking the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) to become the largest ETF in the world. The fund now holds nearly $600 billion in assets, powered by enormous inflows.
In 2024 alone, VOO pulled in more than $100 billion, a record-breaking sum. And in just the first three-and-a-half months of 2025, it’s already taken in half that amount.
VOO’s ascent speaks to one of the biggest and most enduring themes in the ETF world: the preference for low-cost funds. With an expense ratio of just 0.03%, VOO is one of the cheapest ways to get broad exposure to U.S. stocks.
Just as importantly, the S&P 500 remains the dominant benchmark for U.S. equities and the go-to index for long-term investors building wealth over decades. VOO is positioned squarely as the ETF of choice for that strategy. It’s the default pick for countless individual investors, financial advisors and anyone looking to keep things simple and effective. – Sumit Roy
